


Audrey

by MarvelKings



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Cheating, Diabetes, F/M, Family, I'll add tags later, Love Triangle, Major Drama, Minor Character Death, OOC, This is the first story I'm posting, daughter - Freeform, idk - Freeform, nerd references
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-06-01 08:06:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 22,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6509851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvelKings/pseuds/MarvelKings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ren Dela-Torre has been through more than anyone should in a life time. She never looks at life negatively though. She can't. She has a 7 year old daughter named Audrey who is her reason for living. When she meets someone new and starts to fall in love, will she let it happen?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Move

**Author's Note:**

> This story is written with a friend and also posted on wattpad under the same name

"Audrey, where's the box of your toys?" I yelled to my daughter. I poked my head around the corner looking for glimpses of her black hair. Instead, I heard Chris's voice and laughter followed by Audrey's. I smiled to myself, going back to taping up the boxes that contained all my clothes.  
Today, Audrey and I were moving to London. We live, well, currently live, in Oxford. My closest mate, Chris Kendall, made the trip to come and help us move. I walked down the hallway and took the photo of Audrey and me off the wall, smiling. I walked back to my room, grabbed bubble wrap and carefully wrapped the portrait, then placed it in an empty box labeled "Photos".  
"You need help with anything else?" Chris said, coming into my room with Audrey hanging over his shoulder.  
"Un-ca Chris! Put me down!" Audrey said in between fits of giggles. I smiled at the scene before me. Chris has always been so good with her. He's been in my life, well, all my life.  
"No. I'm about done in here. You all done with Audrey's room? That's the last room." I said to Chris while taping up the last box. I put my hair up in a pony tail and turned to him, who began to tickle Audrey.   
"Yeah. We're all done. Want me to start bringing boxes to the truck?" He asked setting Audrey down. I nodded and kissed Audrey on the head.  
"I'll be out to help you in a minute. I'm going to talk to Audrey." I smiled and patted Chris on the shoulder. "Thank you for coming all the way out here to help us. It means a lot."  
"You don't have to thank me, Ren. I was more than happy to help." He said picking up two boxes and walking out the front door.  
I turned around to Audrey and saw her looking around the house. "You okay, Auddie?" I asked sitting next to her on the floor, pulling her into my lap. I took her hair out of the terrible braid that Chris had done to redo it.  
"Can we get a puppy in London, Mommy?" She asked me. I chuckled and finished braiding her hair. I pulled her into my arms and hugged her close.  
"I don't see why not." I smiled seeing her face light up. "Not right away though. I want us to be settled into our new house first." She nodded eagerly causing me to chuckle. She turned around in my lap and hugged me.  
"I love you, Mom." She said quietly. My heart warmed at her words. I softly stroked her hair.  
"I love you too, beautiful." I untangled our limbs and stood up. "Audrey, go and get your bag of hair accessories. I'm going to help Uncle Chris with these boxes." I started picking up a box, hearing Audrey run out of my room to hers. I walked out the front door and set the box in the back of the moving truck. I saw Chris had already brought out a majority of them. I continued this until I got the last box.  
I wiped the beads of sweat off my forehead and walked back into the house. Seeing it empty felt almost wrong. So many memories were in this house. I knew this was a good change for me and especially Audrey. I looked at the inside of the house for a few more seconds, and then shut the door to our old life.  
It was time for a new start.


	2. Chapter 2: One Year Later

Hearing my alarm go off in my room, I started to make my way to Audrey's room. I entered the room and sat down at the foot of her bed and gently woke her up. "Audrey," I said softly. Her eyes opened and she looked at me and smiled. "It's time to get ready for school, baby girl." She nodded and got out of bed and walked sleepily to the bathroom. I smiled after her. I walked back down to the kitchen and made her breakfast plate for her. I set it on the table next to her juice and the syrup bottle.  
15 minutes later, Audrey came bouncing down the stairs in her favorite dress and unkempt hair. She handed me the brush and turned in front of me. I brushed through her hair and used bobby pins to pin back the front of her hair. She put the brush away, then sat down at the table to eat. I grabbed my plate and coffee and sat next to her.  
We finished eating and I took our dirty dishes, rinsed them off and placed them in the dishwasher. I went to my room and pulled on my jeans, cream colored blouse, and red infinity scarf. I quickly applied my makeup and brushed through my hair pulling it into a ponytail. Grabbing my purse and wedges, I poked my head in the living room. "Get shoes on honey. We're about to leave." I said sitting down to put my shoes on.r  
Audrey shut off the television and ran to her room to get her shoes. She returned with them on and her backpack over her shoulder. I ushered her out the door turning all the lights off along the way. I shut the front door and locked it. Audrey unlocked the car door and hopped in the back seat. I got in the driver set and we were off. We pulled up to her school, and she opened the door.  
"Have a good day honey. I love you." I told her.  
"Love you, too." She returned shutting the door.  
I drove to Chris's flat and parked. Taking the elevator up to his floor, I called him letting him know I was here. He responded quickly saying okay. When I got to the door, it was unlocked. Walking in, I saw him on the couch with his coffee and looking through twitter on his phone.  
I plopped down next to him. He smiled at me and wrapped his arm around me.  
"Audrey at school?" He asked. I nodded in response. "Well, I wanted to invite you to a get together tonight. Just a few friends of mine from around here that you haven't met. You can bring Audrey too. It's at the park." I nodded again.  
"I should be able to go. Audrey would love that." I said standing up. "Do you have any more coffee," I asked. He nodded and I went to the kitchen to grab a cup.  
I ended up spending the majority of the day there, until I had to get home before the bus dropped Audrey off.  
"See you later tonight, love." He said pulling me into a hug. I left the flat and drove home. I waited for Audrey to get home for about 30 minutes. I was in the middle of a Sherlock episode when I heard the front door open. It shut and then Audrey popped up.   
She smiled big towards me and joined me on the couch. She pulled out her folder and handed it to me. I looked at how she behaved today. She was great all day. I quickly signed it acknowledging I had seen it. I looked at my watch seeing what time it was.   
3:27  
“Audrey, Uncle Chris invited us to a party with some of his friends at the park in a few hours. You want to go?” I asked her smiling, already knowing the answer.  
Her eyes got big and she had a huge smile.  
“New people!” She yelled. I full on laughed and kissed her on her head still chuckling.   
“Go and choose an outfit to layout then, baby girl.” I said standing up as well to do the same.  
I checked the weather seeing it was going to be chilly tonight, so decided on jeans, my boot heels, and a long sleeved pink floral laced blouse. I also set my white blazer next to it for extra warmth. I then went upstairs to see what Audrey had decided on. She was looking at two dresses. A long sleeved red dress and a long sleeved blue dress that had flowers on it.   
“I like the flowers dress,” I told Audrey. She nodded thoughtfully. She pondered for a few more seconds and put the red dress back in her closet. She set the blue dress down on the bed.   
“What shoes should I wear, Mommy?” She asked me. I looked at her shoes and eventually pulled out two pairs. White slip on shoes, and black mary jane shoes. She decided on the black shoes.   
“Mommy, I’m starving,” she said drawing out the g and collapsing on the floor. I chuckled at her. I sat on the floor and pulled her into my arms.   
“Well, we can heat up some pizza from last night?” I asked her. She nodded frantically. Audrey ran out of my arms and to the kitchen. Walking down the stairs I heard the fridge open and shut.   
She’s not going to be able to reach the plates. I chuckled to myself. Not five seconds later, i heard my name being called by Audrey. I strolled into the kitchen, and grabbed a plate for her from the cupboard. Picking a piece of pizza for both of us, I slid it on the plate and in the microwave.   
“Who’s going to be at the party? Is PJ going to be there? I haven’t seen him in so long.” Audrey said going on.   
“I’m sure he will. I don’t know who else is going to be there though.” The microwave dinged and I grabbed the plate and walked to the living room, resuming my episode of Sherlock, Audrey and I both getting into it for the next few hours.


	3. Audrey?

I looked at the time.   
5:45  
We needed to leave by 6:30. I turned to Audrey and told her it was time to get ready. We went our separate ways to get ready. I pulled on the outfit I had chosen and pulled my black, mid back length hair into a messy side braid. I curled the strands loosely that hung down. Going to my bathroom to do my makeup, I decided on a smokey eye, winged eyeliner, a dark pink matte lipstick and pink blush.   
I grabbed my purse and went to Audrey's room to see how she was doing. She was applying her clear lipgloss in her mirror. It’s all I would let her wear makeup wise. She grabbed her jacket and purse.   
I’ve taught her well. I smiled to myself. “Ready sweetheart?” I asked her. She nodded and put her lipgloss in her purse.   
It was about a fifteen minute drive, but we got there. I hopped out of the car, as did Audrey. I grabbed her hand and locked the car. We walked to the entrance of the park and immediately saw Chris. He was talking to someone and laughing. Audrey let go of my hand and ran up to chris.  
“Uncle Chris!” Audrey yelled startling them both.   
“Audrey!” Chris yelled back spinning her around. I went up to the man he was talking to.   
“I’m sorry about that. She loves her Uncle Chris,” I said chuckling. He smiled.   
“No harm done.” He said holding out his hand. “I’m Phil.” I took his hand in mine and shook it.  
“Renessmee, but you can call me Ren.” I said politely. We both turned to Audrey and Chris and chuckled at Chris tickling her.   
“Your little sister?” He asked me. I shook my head side to side.   
“Daughter. I had her when I was really young but I couldn’t imagine my life without her now.” I said, looking at Phil waiting for the judgement. He smiled and nodded.   
“She’s so cute. You and your husband here together?” he asked.   
I shook my head. “He and I aren’t together anymore,” I said my heart dropping. He had a panicked look on his face.   
“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that,” he said. I smiled up at him and shook my head dismissively.  
“You didn’t know. Don’t worry about it. It’s been years.” I said resting my hand on his arm to let him know I didn’t mind. He calmed down and nodded. Audrey came up to me and tugged on my hand, Phil and I looked at her.  
“What’s up, honey?” I asked her.   
“Can I go to the swings? Please?” She asked me.   
“Go ask Uncle Chris. Come and tell me if you went with him. If he can’t, come get me and we’ll go together. I don’t want you wandering around the park alone at night.” I said kissing her on the head. She nodded and ran off to find Chris. I turned back around to Phil.   
“You’re a great mother,” He said watching Audrey. I blushed lightly.   
“Thank you,” I said. Phil and I continued talking for another 30 minutes or so and I began to get worried about about Audrey. I began looking around.   
“Everything okay?” Phil asked. I shook my head.   
“I’m worried about Audrey. Will you come with me to the swings?” I asked him. He nodded and we walked over.  
I saw the swings and sped up my pace. She’s not here. I started freaking out, looking in every direction.   
“Audrey?” I yelled. Phil came up behind me and set a hand on my shoulder.   
“I’m going to go get my friend, and we’ll look for her as well.” Phil said. I nodded and thanked him. I went back to the party to find Chris  
“Is Audrey with you?” I asked Chris when I found him. He shook his head slowly.   
“No, I thought she went back to you.” I shook my head.   
“She was coming to ask if you would go to the swings with her. That was 45 minutes ago. I have no idea where she is.” I said trying to keep myself calm. Chris nodded and said he’d start looking.   
I spent the next 20 minutes looking around the party for Audrey. I heard my name being yelled and turned to see Phil with another man, and a crying Audrey holding Phil’s hand.I ran up to them, got on my knees and hugged Audrey.  
“Are you okay? Where were you?” I asked her still in my arms. She sniffled and shrugged. I let her go and grabbed her hand. I stood up and turned to the two men.   
“I can’t thank you enough Phil and…” I said trailing off, waiting for his name.  
“Dan. My name’s Dan.” He said holding out his hand. I took it in my hand and firmly shook it.   
“Thank you so much Phil and Dan. I was going crazy. Where was she?” I asked them.  
“By the fountain. Dan actually saw her first. I didn’t have your number so I had to find you then, which I knew would be hard because you were speedy gonzales-ing all over the place.” He said with a small chuckle. I smiled, then Audrey let go of my hand and hugged Phil and then Dan. She then took Dan’s hand and looked at me.   
“Can they come over and play with me? They’re so much fun. Please mommy? Please?” She said practically begging me.   
“Probably not tonight, honey. We have to leave in a little bit. You have school tomorrow and I have work.” I said sadly.   
She nodded. “Can they come over when you don’t have work and I don’t have school?” She asked. I nodded.   
“Of course they can,” I looked at them. “Want to exchange numbers?” I asked them. They nodded and we took turns putting in my number.   
“Where do you work?” Phil asked, as I was putting my phone away.   
“She’s a dancer,” Audrey said, smiling. I chuckled.  
“I’m a choreographer. I run my own company.” I clarified.  
Dan and Phil’s eyes grew wide.  
“That’s so cool .” Dan said. I smiled, chuckling.  
“It’s a lot of fun. This little one is learning how to dance, too” I said to Dan. He nodded subtly. We were looking at each other for a few seconds, but I was pulled out of my trance by Chris’s voice. I turned to see him, and saw him running up to Audrey.   
“Audrey!” He said getting on his knees and hugging her. She smiled and hugged him tight.   
“Uncle Chris!” She returned. “Can we go on the swings now?” She asked him smiling.   
We all burst out laughing.


	4. Abby and Audrey

It had been a little over a week since Chris’s party. I was just getting home from work. It was finally Friday and I was very happy. As I walked in the front door, my phone went off. I looked at the called ID and smiled.   
“Hey Phil,” I said opening the front door.   
“Hello, Ren. How how you been?” He said.  
“I’ve been okay. Just got home from work. You?” I asked in return.   
“I’ve been good. Dan and I wanted to ask you something,” he said.  
“What’s up,” I said setting down my purse in my room and removing my shoes.   
“Would you and Audrey like to join us for a day out tomorrow? We were thinking of going to eat breakfast at this cafe down the street from us, and then going to the London Zoo. Then later in the night, going to the London Eye,” he explained. “Have you been?” He asked me.  
“No, we haven’t been able to do much sightseeing, so that would be really fun and cool,” I said going to fold the laundry that was in the dryer. I put the phone on speaker and resumed folding.   
“Great! It’s a plan, then.” I chuckled and heard the front door open, knowing Audrey was home. She was yelling my name. “I’m downstairs, honey.” I yelled up the stairs. She came down and said hi.   
“You need help, mommy?” she asked. I shook my head no.   
“I do not, but guess what?” I said.  
“What?” she said with a confused look on her face.   
“We’re going to see Phil and Dan tomorrow. We’re going to spend the day together doing fun things.” I told her. Her eyes widened and she jumped up and down.   
“Yay! They’re so much fun. I love them.” She said. She then heard two people laughing through the phone. She smiled and grabbed my phone, going upstairs with it to talk to them. I Chuckled and finished folding. I put the clothes in the basket, and made my way upstairs. I heard her talking to them about school.   
“Baby girl, come help me put your clothes away?” I asked her. She nodded and took the phone with her to her room and set it on the bed.   
“So I told Abby that my mom was a dancer, and she said her mom was a director. So now we’re best friends. We want to have a sleepover. Can I mommy?” she asked me.   
“I want to meet her and her parents first, Audrey. You know how I feel about you going to other people’s house that I don’t know.” She handed me a piece of paper and said that it was her mom's number. I nodded and put it in my pocket.  
“Finish putting away your clothes, and i'll give her mom a call, okay?” I said. She nodded and went back to her clothes. I picked up my phone, took it off speaker and put it up to my ear. Walking out of her room I apologized.  
“I’m so sorry. She loves you guys, if you can’t tell.” I said jokingly. They chuckled. “Well, i’m going to give this girl’s mother a call and see if we can meet for dinner tonight. Text me the address of the cafe you want to meet at, and we’ll be there tomorrow.” I said smiling.   
“Okay. Will do. Have a good night,” Phil said.   
“See you tomorrow,” Dan said.   
“Night guys. See you tomorrow.” I said hanging up the phone. I pulled out the number and dialed it.   
“Hello,” A gentle voice answered.   
“Hi, is this Abby’s mother?” I asked.  
“Yes, this is she. My name is Andrea. Is this Audrey’s mom?” she asked me unsure.  
“Yes! It is.My name is Ren. Audrey came home and gave me this number because our girls were talking about a sleepover and I wanted to meet you before anything like that happened. I’m overprotective, but I’d rather know who she is with.” I explained.   
“Of course! I told Abby the same thing. I want to meet her parents first so she knows that we aren’t crazy psychopaths.” She said chuckling. I chuckled along with her.   
“Well, I wanted to know if you wanted to meet for dinner tonight? To get to know one another. The girls would love it, too.” I asked her.  
“That would be great! Do you know where Verdi is?” She asked me.  
“I do. Want to meet there?” I asked politely.  
“If it's not too out of the way for you.” She replied kindly.   
“No. It’s about a twenty minute drive, but that’s okay.” I said with a smile.  
“Perfect. I’ll call and make reservations for 6:30 then? Sound okay?” She asked. I looked at my watch.   
4:53  
“That sounds perfect.” I replied.   
“Okay. I’ll call right now. See you then. Goodbye!” She said in a perky voice.  
“Goodbye,” I said equally as perky. I hung up the phone and told Audrey of the plans.


	5. The London zoo

My alarm went off at 9. I woke up and hopped in the shower, deciding to get ready. We were to meet Dan and Phil at 11. After I was out of the shower, I slipped on a dark pink knee length dress with half sleeves and a floral pattern. I curled my hair loosely and did my makeup, deciding on a light beige eyeshadow, eyeliner and a dark pink lipstick. I also grabbed my white blazer, as it was still a little chilly outside. I grabbed my white flats and purse and set them down in the living room. I went to find Audrey. She was still sleeping, so I woke her up.   
“Audrey, it’s ten, honey. We have to leave in a half an hour to see Dan and Phil,” I told her, gently shaking her. Her eyes opened wide and she jumped out of bed grabbing her favorite purple dress out of the closet and changing quick. I laughed and grabbed her hairbrush, having her come over to me so I could brush through it. It was still slightly damp from her shower last night. I braided two strands from each side of her face and joined them in the back of her head with a clip.   
“It’s chilly. Don’t forget your jacket,” I said going to slide my shoes on and grab my purse. She met me in the living room and we were off.   
We walked into the restaurant, and Audrey immediately spotted Dan and Phil. She ran to their table and hugged Phil and then Dan. I came up to the table and hugged each of them.  
“Hello,” I said.   
“Can I sit next to Phil?” Audrey asked. Phil nodded and pulled out her chair for her. She giggled, hopped in and he pushed her in. I took my seat next to Dan and smiled at him.   
“How are you guys?” I asked.   
“Great,” They both replied.   
The waiter made his way over to our table.  
“Hello, I’m Sam. I’ll be taking care of you today. What can I get you to drink?” Dan, Phil and I all got coffee, while Audrey got lemonade.   
“So how was work?” Phil asked me. I smiled.  
“Good. I actually got a call about making a dance routine for an american television show called ‘Dancing with the stars’. I have to make it to a song called Classic. I’m very excited.” I said with a smile.   
Our drinks came out, and we all ordered our food. After we were finished eating we off to the zoo. The day went by quickly. Phil and Audrey eventually split off from Dan and I to go see the Lions. Dan and I were watching the penguins.   
“You’re such a great mother. I mean, you’re a single mother but you play both roles so well.” Dan said. I smiled softly. I looked at him.  
“I’ve been doing it for 4 years now,” I said. “I guess I’ve just gotten use to it.” I said with a faint smile.  
Dan looked down at his hands and looked up,” You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but where is Audrey’s father?” Dan asked looking at me for my reaction. I tensed up. You can trust him, Ren. I nodded slightly.  
“His name was Henry. We were engaged. Audrey was almost 3 years old, and he was on his way home from work. He was hit head on by a drunk driver and died on impact.” I saw Dan tense up beside me. “Audrey doesn’t remember him, and she’s starting to get curious about him. I don’t want to tell her yet, so I’ve been steering that topic away whenever she even remotely brings it up.” I said quieter.   
“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked,” he said awkwardly. I shook my head.   
“Don’t worry about it. It was a long time ago, and Audrey and I are good. We’re a team and we keep each other going. She may be seven, but she’s an old soul.” I said smiling and looking up at the clear blue sky. “I just wish that Henry could see how much she’s grown. He would be so proud of her. She had him wrapped around her finger.” I looked back to see Dan staring at me.   
“What?” I asked checking if I had anything on my face. He shook his head and lowered his gaze to the ground then back to my eyes.   
“Nothing, you’re just such a kind, sweet, beautiful woman. You’re a great mother and you put everyone before you. It’s just refreshing to see that in this day and age. Some girls your age still act like they’re in high school.” He said softly smiling at me. I smiled back.  
“Well, I had to mature up and become an adult at 17, when I realized I had a living being growing inside of me.” I said chuckling. “I was terrified at first but then feeling her grow inside of me changed everything.” I said placing my hand on my flat stomach. “I’d love to have more children one day, with the man I marry.” I said watching the penguins waddle around.  
“Mommy!” I heard Audrey yell. I turned around.   
“What’s wrong, love?” I asked her. She shook her head.   
“Can I have cotton candy?” I laughed and nodded. She then ran back to Phil and told him something, and he looked at me for approval. I nodded and smiled. I mouthed thank you. He smiled at me in return.   
I turned back around to Dan. “Want to go meet up with them?” I asked him. He shook his head.  
“Nah. I’m enjoying this weather. It’s, for once, a beautiful day in London.”He said looking at the sky, then me. He looked at me for a few more seconds then turned back to the Penguins. “I am, however, confused as to why I’m at the Penguins exhibit.” He said chuckling. I smiled in return.  
“Audrey’s favorite animal of the week,” I said jokingly. He let out a soft chuckle. She often changed her favorite things, like colors, foods, or animals. It just became a joke to ask what her favorite of the week was.   
I studied Dan watching the Penguins. He seemed to be thinking. Watching his jaw clench and unclench, I looked at his eyes and they seemed to be looking off into the distance at nothing in particular. I looked at his hair, the dark brown color, obviously straightened,the ends having the slightest curl to them.   
He has gauges. I said to myself a bit surprised.   
“Take a picture, it lasts longer,” he said jokingly, turning to meet my eyes. I looked away embarrassed, whispering an apology. I felt my cheeks become hot and looked in a different direction to avoid being seen by him.   
“It’s okay. I don’t mind,” he said. “I’d probably do the same thing,” he whispered, which cause my face to heat up even more. He cleared his throat. “So how’s the routine going,” he asked politely.  
In my flustered state, I couldn’t remember what he was talking about for a minute. “Routine? What rou- oh! Yeah, it’s getting there. My partner and I are working on moves that we can incorporate into the dance. We’re trying to make a plot to it. Something along the lines of, man is in love with a 1950’s movie star, they meet and she falls in love as well. If you want to come by the studio sometime and watch, you’re more than welcome to. Same for Phil.” I said with a big smile on my face.   
He nodded in return. “That sounds cool. A lot of exercise, but cool,” Dan said chuckling.   
“Oh yeah. Lots of exercise,” I said laughing at him. He smiled and shook his head.   
“Phil and I might drop by tomorrow. Will you be in,” he asked me.  
I nodded. “I will, not until around noon, though. I’m dropping Audrey off at her friends for a sleepover since she has Monday off from school.” He nodded his head, thinking. “Whatcha thinking about,” I asked him, leaning unconsciously closer to him, until our arms were grazing. I then realized the closeness, but I didn’t mind and he didn’t seem to either. He looked at me.   
“Would you maybe like to come over to our flat tomorrow and play games and get to know each other better?” he asked me, leaning a little bit closer. I smiled, and nodded.   
“Seems like fun. I’d love to.” I said. A gust of wind came by and knocked my hair all around. I was going to push it back behind my ear, but another hand beat me to it. I looked up to see Dan, carefully placing the hair behind my ear, his hand hovering where it was a few seconds too long. We were in the trance again. Staring at his eyes, I could see the different shades of brown melded together. His long eyelashes framing his eyes quite nicely, and his eyebrows scrunching up the tiniest bit as he studied my face, too. He started leaning closer, as did I.  
“Mommy,” Audrey yelled. I whipped out of my trance and looked at her. She waved to me and walked over. “This cotton candy is so good. We should buy it at the store all the time.”   
“I don’t know about all the time, Audrey. Cotton candy is pure sugar. A little treat of it every now and then, okay baby girl?” I compromised with her. She nodded sadly, but then ran off back to Phil.  
I turned around to Dan and sheepishly looked at him. Do I apologize for what almost happened? No. I meant it. Why should I apologize? I was getting ready to tell him how fond of him I was, when he said something that crushed me.  
“I’m sorry.I didn’t mean for that to happen. I’m kind of seeing someone right now and I don’t know if I could handle having a girlfriend who has a child.” he said quietly, not meeting my eyes.   
My stomach plummeted, and my eyes starting glazing over.   
If he didn’t like me that way, why did he lead me to believe he did. I’m glad he said something now, because I don’t have time for people who aren’t ready for a serious relationship. Yes, I have a daughter. We’re a package deal.   
I nodded, and looked away. “It’s okay. I’m going to find Audrey. I just remembered that we had plans this evening,” I said, trying to find an excuse to get away from him. I didn’t wait for his reaction, I just left and went to find Phil. I stumbled upon them rather quickly. I walked up behind them, and tapped Phil on the shoulder.   
“ I just remembered that I have to get going. The show I’m doing the routine for wanted to live chat at 4. So, we have to slide out of here,” I said lying smoothly, looking at them both sadly.   
Phil nodded and gave Audrey a hug, and then me. “If you ever want to stop by our house and join us for dinner or something one of these days, I’ll text you the address,” I told Phil. He nodded.  
“I’ll do the same,” he smiled. “Good luck with that live chat.” I smiled, feeling bad about lying to Phil.  
“Thank you,” I waved goodbye to him, and Audrey and I walked out of the Zoo, to our car, and then we took the long drive home. While we were driving, Audrey asked me a question that threw me off.  
“Why did you say you had your live chat today? I thought it was next Saturday.” she said, while fiddling with the hem of her dress.  
“Something came up. We had to leave,” I explained. “I’ll take you back to the Zoo, I promise, baby,” I told her. She smiled and nodded her head.


	6. The dance

One, two, three, four, five, six, shit.  
I continually kept messing up on the sixth beat of the line. I sighed with frustration. I looked in the mirror and slowed down the moves. I have to gradually speed it up. By the time I got through it once, Victor walked through the doors. He was my dance partner. I watched him set his stuff down in the mirror, and walk over to me, greeting me.  
“Hey, Ren. You change anything up,” He asked studying me. I shook my head and started the music, messing up on the sixth beat again.  
“God dammit!” I yelled, frustrated. Victor stopped the music and came up behind me.   
“You’re throwing your arms up to high, and it's not giving you enough time to return to that stance to go on with the move.” He said, taking my arms and doing the moves for me. I copied what he did, without him leading me, and was able to do it.   
“Yes! I’ve been stuck on that all morning,” I said gleefully. “Want to run through it,” I asked him. He nodded.  
I played the music and we went through the routine twice. In our final pose, Victor dropped me on purpose and we both broke out laughing.   
“You think it’s ready to be sent to the show,” I asked him. Victor nodded.   
“Oh yeah. More than ready,” he agreed. I smiled and turned around meeting an all too familiar shade of brown eyes and blue eyes.  
I walked over to them slowly. “Hello,” I said with a smile on my face, making it seem like yesterday didn’t bother me. They both smiled and waved.   
“You guys see the routine,” I asked. They both nodded. “What did you think?” I asked.  
“It was amazing. The way he twirled you around like a baton was beyond me. Do you have whiplash from that?” Phil said astonished. I chuckled. I shook my head.   
“I’m use to being thrown around like a potato sack. It’s what modern dancing is,” I smiled.   
“Hey, a graceful potato sack,” Victor yelled from the other side of the room. I laughed.  
“Thanks Victor. Well, we’re all done for the day, so go and get home to your son.” I said turning to him, putting my full attention to him. He nodded, grabbed his bag, came up to me, kissed my cheek.   
“Are we still on for the Theater next Friday,” he asked me. I nodded.  
“Yep. We can probably catch dinner before it, too so there is no whining,” I said, laughing. He joined in and raised his eyebrows.  
“Isn’t that the truth. Well goodnight, love. It was nice meeting you two lads,” Victor said and walked out the door. I went to the back room and packed up all of my stuff, planning to leave in a few minutes as well. I slipped my sneakers back on and pulled my hair out of the ponytail, leaving it in a messy state. I was too tired to care, though. I walked out of the room, and grabbed the keys, indicating to the boys that I was locking up. They got the hint, and stood up. They followed me out the door.   
I turned to them and smiled. “It was nice seeing you guys, again. I’m going to get home, take a bath and probably watch television then fall asleep,” I said. “My life is boring, but I’m okay with it.”


	7. The Sickness

“Wait!” Phil said and softly grabbed my arm. I jumped, startles at the contact so suddenly, and turned back around, smiling.   
“Yeah?” I asked, feeling my phone buzz, but ignoring it, giving my full attention to Phil.   
“Would you want to join us for-” Phil said but my phone started buzzing again, and I fished it out of my bag, and asked him to wait a second, seeing it was Andrea. He nodded understandingly. I pressed the answer call button, and brought the phone up to my ear.   
“Hey Andrea, what's up?” I asked with a peppy tone. I looked between Dan and Phil and caught Dan staring at me, I pretended not to notice, but restrained myself from fully looking at him.   
“It's Audrey. She's not doing so good. She's been vomiting and has a fever of 103. I was going to take her to the hospital, and wanted to know which one to go to. I figured you'd want to meet us there.”  
My heart sped up, as she said that. I nodded, but then realized she couldn't see it.   
“Yeah, yeah. Take her to the one closest to you. Just let me know the name and I'll meet you there.” I said running a hand through my hair.   
“Will do, I'll text it to you. See you in a few.” She hung up. I quickly threw my phone in my bag again, and opened my car door throwing my bag in.   
Phil came up behind me, touching my elbow, “What's wrong? Are you okay?” He said worried. I couldn't think straight. I shook my head and nodded.   
“Audrey. Hospital. Gotta go,” I said not being able to form coherent sentences. I was about to get into the drivers seat.   
“Woah, woah. You're not driving in this state. I'll drive you.” Phil said, and looked to Dan, throwing the keys to their car to him. Dan looked up confused.   
“I'll follow you guys,”he started. I shook my head.   
“No, you don't have to,” I said aloud. You're not ready for kids, remember? I said internally. I hopped into the passenger seat and buckled up, Phil then got into the driver's seat and we were off, after I told him what hospital to go to. My hands were shaking in my lap, and then Phil reached over and clasped my hand in his larger one. I smiled at him weakly. When we pulled up to the hospital, he quickly parked and we jumped out of the car, running towards the entrance. When we got to the Reception Desk, I cleared my throat and waited for the nurse to look at me. She smiled up at me.  
“What can I do you for?” She said glancing between Phil and I.   
“Audrey Del-Torre, she's here isn't she?” The nurse looked up her name on the computer and smiled.   
“Yes she is. But I'm afraid it's family only.” She said to us.   
I weakly smiled and pulled out my ID, “I'm her mother,”I said showing her the card. She nodded. I looked over at Phil, and said the first thing that came to my mind. “And this is her father. We're married,” I said making eye contact with Phil, gauging his reaction. He grabbed my hand and kissed the back of it, relaxing me. I smiled at him, and returned my attention to the nurse who was staring adoringly at us.   
“Room 257-E.” She said smiling at us and returning to her computer. I then dragged Phil and I to the lift going to the fifth floor.  
The ride seemed to take forever, but as the doors opened, Phil squeezed my hand and we exited the lift.


	8. The Coma

“What do you mean she's in a Coma,” I asked in a scared voice. Phil wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him.   
“The flu virus seemed to have settled in her Pancreas, ultimately killing it. The Pancreas produces Insulin. When you eat food or drink anything, your pancreas knows the exact amount of insulin to push out according to amount and sugars, carbs, etc. Audrey is in a diabetic Coma. Her records show that she's lost about 9 pounds and this is a telltale sign, as well as Ketoacidosis. When your body doesn't have insulin, your body is starving and starts to eat the fat cells in your body. When it's eaten the cell all that is left are Ketones. They are usually expelled from the body in urine or through rapidly breathing. It's essentially toxic, so your body wants to get it out. We don't know when she’ll wake up. But if she does, I'll have our Endocrinologist come in and discuss this with all three of you. You'll need to know how to take care of her having this disease. It's not cureable, but it is treatable. ” I sobbed and turned into Phil's chest and cried as the doctor left. Phil wrapped his arms around me, consoling me. He backed us up and sat us down on the couch next to Audrey’s bed.   
I quickly pulled away, trying to compose myself. “I'm so sorry,” I apologized and wiped my eyes.   
“You have nothing to apologize for. I'm here for you. Both of you. If you ever need anything, I'll be here.” he said kissing my forehead. I closed my eyes and hummed quietly as a thank you. My arms circled around his neck and I gave a shuttering sigh, releasing all the pent up emotion. I then pulled away, slowly, looking at him through misty eyes.   
“I don't know what I'd do without you right now, you're my rock,” I said meeting his blue eyes. He smiled.   
“Anytime, Ren.” I sat back against the couch, gazing at my daughter, praying that she’ll wake up. My hands started shaking again, but Phil grabbed my hand, instantly calming my nerves.   
It was nice to know I wasn't alone.  
Within the few hours we were there, Phil had fallen asleep, his head laying on my shoulder and softly snoring. My gaze was still on Audrey, waiting for any sign of movement.   
At some point I must've fallen asleep, because I awoke to the scene of my daughter talking to Phil animatedly. Before I registered movement, I was off the couch and gently pulled Audrey into my arms. Tears threatened to fall, as I chanted my daughters name like a mantra, rocking her gently. She smiled and returned the hug not letting go for a while. I looked up, meeting Phil’s eyes, and gently pulled him into the hug. He smiled and kissed Audrey's head. We stayed like that until the doctor came in. We all looked up when we heard his chuckle.   
“Seems you've finally woken up, little one. I'm going to take your vitals and then call in the Endocrinologist to explain everything that's happening,” he said, taking her vitals,and then he opened the door and left. Audrey looked at Phil and I with fear in her eyes. Before I could say anything, Phil was comforting her, and whispering to her that everything would be okay. I smiled adoringly at the two.   
Phil would make a great father one day, I thought, but he looked up at me and blushed, thanking me.   
Shit. I said that out loud? I blushed and looked down, taking Audrey's hand and squeezing it, gently kissing her forehead.   
“We’ll get through this baby. I promise.” I said.   
“I'll be there,too. Whenever you need me.” Phil said looking up at me and back down to Audrey. I reached over and clasped his hand as well.   
She looked up at us. “Like a family?” She asked. I was taken aback by the question but looked up to Phil waiting for his reaction. He smiled at me and looked back down to her.   
“Yes. Like a family.”


	9. The Solution

After a few hours of idle talk and television, the Endocrinologist walked in after the doctor. She introduced herself as Dr. Hough. She then explained for the next few hours about the importance of Audrey’s health and diet, answering any question no matter how minuscule it was. One thing she said did cause Audrey to groan.   
“You cannot have sugar. You can't drink soda either. It has to be diet soda, if you drink it.” Audrey groaned, and Ren looked at Audrey with a serious demeanor, silently scolding her. She looked down. Phil watched on in amusement, quietly chuckling in the background. I shook my head and joined in, my shoulders silently shaking. Audrey looked up and I immediately froze. She gave me a puzzled look, I smiled softly at her, and returned to the doctor, paying attention. Phil then squeezed my hand, that he was still holding.   
Later on, Audrey fell asleep after the doctor and specialist left. Phil and I were sitting on the couch, huddled together going in and out of sleep. The shrill sound of a phone ringing, awoke Phil and I. He pulled out his phone and sighed. “It's Dan,” he said looking at me. I gave a slight smile and nodded, him answering the phone.   
“Hey,” he said groggily.   
“No, no it's okay. We've been in and out of sleep. Everyone's okay. We're waiting on news from the doctor.” He said answering the questions. He looked at me, and stood up gently letting go of my hand. I look up at him worried, he gently smiled and kissed her hand. “I'll be back in a few minutes.”  
I watched him walk out of the door, and the turned my attention to Audrey.   
Phil's PoV:  
I rubbed my temples at how insensitive Dan was being.   
He kept asking where the hell I was.   
“You've been there all day Phil. You need to get home. Did you forget the meeting with our manager?” Dan said, annoyed. I rolled my eyes.   
“Honestly, our manager is the last thing on my mind right now. You need to know what's going on,” I started filling him in but was cut off by his yell.   
“I don't care what's going on, Phil. We have responsibilities. You need to get home. Now.” He said menacingly.   
I scoffed. “Are you serious right now? You don't know what's going on. It's serious, life threatening stuff. And I'm not going anywhere. Ren needs me. Audrey needs me. You can take care of our manager. If she has a problem with that, let her know that we can find a new one.” I said, then promptly hung up. I took a deep breath to calm myself, and then entered the room again, seeing Audrey and now, Ren, asleep on the couch. I sat next to her and put my arm around her gently pulling her head towards my shoulder. She stirred awake, groggily looking at me.   
“You came back,” she questioned, looking at me with her light hazel eyes. I smiled and nuzzled my face into her hair.  
“I'll always come back.”   
Ren’s PoV:   
“I'll always come back,” he replied. I smiled up at him, grabbed his hand, and pulled it into my lap, then turned my attention to Audrey.   
I know you will, Phil.


	10. Home

Third person PoV:   
The doctor knocked on the door mid morning, sweeping in and explained to all of them how to administer the Insulin. Ren was nodding, but still not fully there. She was still struggling with the fact that her daughter would have to deal with this her whole life, and there was nothing she could do to fix it. It made her feel like an inadequate parent.  
Phil’s PoV:  
“That's everything you need to know. We still want to keep Audrey here for another day of observation, just to make sure she's okay.” Ren nodded and held out her hand to shake his.   
“I can't thank you enough. You've been wonderful.” She said pulling her hand away, and smiling softly. When the doctor left, her smile dropped and she fell back into the couch, looking defeated. It was only then, that I noticed she hadn't eaten, used the bathroom or got a drink in the past 18 hours. His thought was interrupted when a woman and another little girl entered the room.  
Ren looked up and smiled at them both, standing up slowly to go over and hug them.   
“Why don't you and Phil go get some food, a change of clothes and a shower. Maybe even a nap. We can stay here for a few hours,” Andrea, he had learned her name, said.   
He looked to Ren for the call, and she nodded, going over to Audrey and kissing her forehead, telling her that we’d be back. She walked over to me, exhausted. Grabbing her purse, she then opened the door and exited the room.   
“I can cook something for us if you like back at my place. By cook, I mean order Chinese or pizza and throw away the box to make it look like I'm a five star chef,” Ren offered, smiling lazily up at me. I chuckled.   
“That sounds perfect,” I said, hopping into the driver's seat of her car. She then told me directions to her house and we arrived within 10 minutes.   
After the pizza was ordered, Ren went to the shower and told me to watch television or take a nap. She also set out towels for me so I could shower after her. I eventually fell asleep.   
Ren’s PoV:  
I stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around my hair and body. Hand drying my hair with a towel for a few minutes, then turning on my hair dryer to get the rest of the job done. When it was dry, I left it in its curly state, or bothering to straighten it as I almost always did. I pulled on my undergarments, jeans and black blouse. I then applied black eyeliner, mascara and a pink matte lipstick.  
After I left the bathroom, I tossed my dirty clothes in the laundry room and went to go look through some of Henry's clothes that I still had for Phil. I found a black and white plaid shirt along with jeans and a pair of unused boxers. They looked about the same size. I then carried the clothes out to Phil, about to let him know I was done, but saw him laying down, asleep on the couch, snoring lightly. I smiled softly and sat down in front of the couch and leaned my head back, sleep slowly taking me.  
We were both startled awake when a loud knock came from my front door, followed by the doorbell. I stood up and walked over to the door, paying the teenager and taking the pizza. Shutting the door with my foot, I then turned to the kitchen and set the pizza down. I was pulled into a trance and stood still for I don't know how long studying nothing in particular.   
I was jolted out of my trance when a hand rested on my shoulder. “You okay there?” Phil asked me, rubbing sleep from his eyes. I nodded.   
“Yeah. Just thinking. It's been a stressful day,” I said with a soft smile. He patted my shoulder, and smiled at me.   
“She’ll get through this. We all will.” He said, then turned to grab a slice of pizza and sat at the bar. I did the same and we ate in silence. Both of us thinking about the day we had. I felt bad for Phil. He didn't have to be here, yet he was. I found myself blushing, thinking about how good he's been with both Audrey and me. He could've gone home after he dropped us off, yet he didn't. He stayed to make sure not only me, but most importantly, Audrey was okay. It made my heart warm thinking about how well they got along. I have a feeling he's going to be in our life for a long time.   
I was pulled out of my thoughts by my phone ringing. I answered without looking.  
“Hello,” I said effortlessly.  
“Hi, can I speak to Ren,” a man asked through the phone.  
“This is she,” I answered with a pep to my voice.   
“Hey, I'm Derek, Andrea’s husband. We wanted to let you know that she's been asking for you.” He said with a clear voice.  
“Of course. Well we just need to finish up our showers and we will be on our way back, maybe another 30 minutes,” I said looking at Phil. He nodded, standing up, throwing his plate away and grabbing his clothes and towels.   
“Okay. See you soon,” he said and then hanging up. I then Followed Phil, leading the way to the bathroom and showing him how the shower worked. While I waited for Phil to come out, I layer on the couch and fell asleep.  
“Ren, wake up,” I heard Phil say softly, gently stroking my hair. I opened my eyes to see him looking at me smiling. “We gotta get back to the hospital.”  
I nodded and stood up, slipping on my black flats, grabbing my jacket and bag and then turned to Phil to see him in the clothes that I gave him.   
They're a good fit. I smiled.  
He slipped his shoes back on and grabbed the car keys off the table. He then opened and held the door ajar for me, waiting for me to go through. When we were both out I locked the door and we made our way to my car.


	11. Dr. Chester Lloyd

We pulled into the hospital parking lot, and got out of the car. We returned to Audrey's room. When we got there we saw a man who looked to be in his forties or fifties talking to Audrey, both of them smiling. He immediately looked over at us and stood up, smiling at us.   
“You must be Mr. and Mrs. Del-Torre. I'm Dr. Chester Lloyd. The Endocrinologist here called me to let me know that you would need one. I run my own private practice and I've looked into your case, it's definitely a very rare one. I wanted to ask if we could set up a consultation and first appointment so we can discuss treatment options for Audrey. We need to get that done as soon as possible. The hospital will provide a bottle of insulin and syringe for Audrey for a couple days, until we can discuss whether we want to do the syringe or an insulin pump. I know she is being released tomorrow, so I wanted to ask if you could come to our office tomorrow afternoon. Say, three?” He said looking at me.   
I nodded my head, unable to speak.   
“That sounds good. We’ll be there,” Phil said, shaking the doctors hand. “Thank you so much.”   
I then shook his hand as well, thanking him. He handed me a card with his name, address of his practice and phone number on it. He gave us a smile and left the room. I then looked at Audrey and sat next to her on the bed. I softly stroked her hair and kissed it.   
“How are you feeling, baby?” I asked her.  
She smiled. “I'm okay. Really tired. And hungry.” She said. I chuckled softly.  
“I'll ask the doctor what you can eat. I'll be back in a couple minutes. Phil’s here,” I said looking at him, smiling at us. I kissed her head and stood up, walking over to Phil. “I'll be right back.” He nodded and went to sit where I was before on Audrey's bed. I left the room to find the doctor and asked him what Audrey could eat. He said anything, and that he would be in there to give her the insulin shortly. I went to the cafeteria, and found a turkey sandwich and fruit. She loved mangoes and apples. I found a fruit cup and grabbed three waters. I went up to the register and bought everything. They gave me a tray to carry everything up. When I got back up to the room that Audrey was in, I then put the tray in my other arm and opened the door.   
Audrey looked up and smiled knowing she would be getting food. I set it down on the table. “ we have to wait for the doctor to get here to administer your insulin,” I said handing Phil his water. She nodded and returned to her conversation with Phil. About 2 minutes later the doctor came into the room with a bottle of insulin and a syringe. Audrey looked at me scared and started freaking out at the sight of a needle. I sat on the other side of her and told her to calm down. She was near tears and shook her head.   
“I know you don't like needles, but you have to do this. It will be done super quick. I'm going to pinch your skin softly on your shoulder and put this is in. It'll be over before you know it,” the doctor explained calmly. Audrey calmed down a little bit and nodded. She turned her head and put it in my chest to not see the needle. I kissed her forehead. The doctor than gave her the insulin.   
“All done,” he said, disposing of the needle in the biohazard wastebasket. Audrey looked up confused.   
“I didn't feel anything,” she said. The doctor nodded.   
“Enjoy your food,” he said, and then left the room. I handed the sandwich and fruit cup to Audrey and she tore the bag open, pulling out the sandwich. She slowly started eating the sandwich. I then turned on the television for her turning it to the Disney channel. She became engrossed in the show that was on. I sat on the couch with Phil. I turned to him.   
“You can go home. You've been here for a while. I really appreciate it but I assume you have something to do today? It is the middle of the week,” I said smiling up at him softly. He smiled back at me and nodded softly.   
“I think I will run home for a little bit. I'll call Dan to come and pick me up. I'll be back early tomorrow morning though. I want to go with you to that doctor's appointment for Audrey. If that's okay, of course,” he said stumbling over his words. I nodded eagerly.   
“That would be great. Audrey would love that,” I said happily. So would I.   
He stood up and pulled me into a hug, softly stroking my hair. “Everything's okay,” he said softly. He pulled back and kissed my forehead. He then went over to Audrey and did the same. He waved and left the room.   
I then joined Audrey on the bed and we watched the television together.   
Phil’s PoV:  
I pulled out my phone and called Dan.   
“Hi,” he said after answering the phone.  
“Hey, I wanted to know if you could pick me up from the Hospital. If you can't I'll get a taxi but I wanted to ask,” I said tiredly.   
“Yeah. I can come and get you. Listen, about yesterday, I'm really sorry. I'm just really stressed about this release date for this website. We still have so much to do,” he said apologetically.   
“It's okay, I just wished that you had listened. Ren and Audrey are going through hell right now. And I need you to understand that they're really going to need m- I mean us,” I said catching myself.   
“Okay. I'll be there in a few minutes. Will you fill me in when I get there and on the way home,” he asked me. My eyes widened slightly and I smiled.   
“Of course. I'll see you in a few minutes,” I said.  
“Okay. See you,” he said, hanging up the phone.   
I found myself thinking about Audrey. She was so little, and going through something most adults can't even fathom. I couldn't even imagine how Ren must have been feeling. Knowing that there was nothing you could do to help your child. My thoughts kept me going for a couple minutes.   
I was pulled out of it a few minutes later with a car stopping in front of me. I immediately registered it to be Dan and hopped into the car. I buckled up and he started driving.   
“So what's going on,” Dan asked me. I looked up at him and let out a sigh I didn't know I had been holding. I then took the next fifteen minutes to explain the situation to Dan.


	12. The endocrinologist

Ren’s PoV:   
Audrey, Phil and I walked out of the hospital, after getting her discharge papers signed. Phil stayed true to his word and returned earlier this morning. We had to be at the doctors by three and it was nearly two. We walked to my car, me hopping in the driver’s seat and putting the address of the office into my GPS. It said it was about a twenty minute drive from where we were.  
The whole ride there, Audrey was asking questions about what they were going to do. We didn't know exactly so we kept giving her the same answer. We don't know.   
When I finally pulled up to the office, I grabbed my bag and got out of my seat, closing the door and headed to Audrey's door, but Phil had beaten me there and was helping her out of the car seat. She took both of our hands and we walked to the door, opening it.   
When we entered, the office smelled very clean. I took in the appearance of the place. White walls, tile floors, and a waiting room with uncomfortable looking chairs and bright, cheery wallpaper. Phil took her to the waiting room while I went up to the window where the receptionist was.   
“Hi, I'm here for Audrey Del-Torre. She had an appointment at three,” I said pulling out my ID, insurance card and the co pay. She looked on her computer and nodded, handing me a clipboard with papers to fill out for Audrey. I nodded and thanked her. She took my ID and insurance card saying she had to make a copy to keep on file. She returned quickly and gave them back to me.   
“Your co pay is 50 euros,” she said smiling at me. I handed her the money, and took my cards and the clipboard, walking to the waiting room.   
I sat down next to Audrey, glancing at her and Phil as they pulled faces at each other making themselves laugh. I smiled and turned away to put my cards back into my wallet, and started filling out her papers. By the time I was done, a nurse called us back. I handed her the clipboard, and we all followed her back. They then proceeded to take her weight, and height. After that was done we were led to a room.   
“The doctor will be in shortly,” she said with a smile and left the room.   
“I'm scared, mom,” Audrey said. She looked at me, her eyes glazing over, and her bottom lip trembling. I took her hand and kissed it.   
“Don't be scared, honey. He's here to help you. We are both going to be here through the whole thing. I promise,” I told Audrey. She slowly started calming down. The room became silent for the next couple minutes.   
The door then swung open and Dr. Lloyd greeted us. He shook all of our hands.   
“So how are you feeling, Audrey,” he asked her. She shrugged.   
“Okay. Just tired and kind of dizzy,” she said.   
“That's because you haven't eaten,” he said, putting a blood pressure cuff on her arm. “Your blood pressure seems a little high , but that's probably because of the lack of food. Now I'm going to take your glucose levels. You'll feel a little prick on your finger and then I'm going to put it on this strip,” he said showing us all, “then you put it in this machine and it will tell you if your glucose levels are too high or too low,” he explained. We all nodded. “You can find these at any local drugstore. They're pretty reasonably priced. You will need a prescription for the test strips but I can provide that. You will need to take her blood before and after every meal,” he then proceeded to prick her finger and put the drop of the blood on the strip that was inserted into the handheld device. Within five seconds the device had read that her levels were at 87.   
“You want to keep her levels in between 70 and 130. If it goes below that, she will have a sugar crash or Hypoglycemia. If she does crash, she won't have a great idea of what's going on, so you'll have to keep an eye on her. You will need to feed her something that has sugar in it. The sugar will help regulate her glucose levels. She should be fine within a few minutes after consuming sugar,” he said. We all nodded. He then continued.   
“The most important thing now. The insulin pump. We are going to insert a tube into your side and this will be connected to it,” he said holding up a small device. He then handed it to Audrey and proceeded to teach us how to use it.   
“We have many options for insulin pump brands but because she is so young, I recommend the Accu-Chek pump. It's easy to use and takes your glucose levels every hour. It can also prevent you from giving yourself too much insulin.” He explained.   
“We want that one then,” I said, nodding. He smiled.  
“I'll be right back with the device and papers to fill out for it,” he said, and then left the room. Within two minutes he had returned. I read through and signed the papers and filling out the basic information it asked for. I gave it back to him and then he asked Audrey to lean back. She obliged to his request.  
“Now I'm going to lift up your shirt slightly and insert this little needle or Cannula into your side, okay,” he said looking at Audrey's face. She nodded and grabbed my hand. He inserted the needle and tube gently into her side.   
“What that's going to do, is keep a continuous flow of insulin in your body. When you eat, the Cannula will send a message to the pump letting it know how much insulin to release,” he then turned around and wrote a prescription for test strips and insulin.   
“This should be good for a month,” he said handing me the two prescription papers.  
“I would like her to come in every month, so I can check up on her,” he said looking at me.   
“That shouldn't be a problem,” I said softly smiling.   
“Okay. Talk to the receptionist about a return date, and have a great day,” he said shaking all of our hands and leaving the room. We helped Audrey off the table and grabbed all of our belongings.   
After I talked to the receptionist, we were on our way out. It was almost five thirty.   
“You guys want to go out to eat,” I asked them, “my treat?” I said looking at Phil. He nodded.  
“That would be great,” he said. “Where do you want to go Audrey?” She then proceeded to decide on a restaurant.


	13. The Kiss

It had been two weeks since we were at the hospital. Audrey seemed to be dealing well with everything and we both fell back into our normal schedules. Victor and I had submitted our dance to the television show yesterday, and were waiting for a response.   
I was currently at home, picking up around the house and cooking dinner for Audrey and I when there was a knock on my door. I went to open it and was greeted with Dan and Phil. I smiled, and invited them in.   
“Hello Phil….Dan,” I said coolly.   
“I love you!” Dan blurted out, a surprised look on his face as if he didn't know why he had just said that.  
“What the hell mate?!” Phil exclaimed casting his bewildered eyes towards Dan. “You know I called dibs!”  
“Please, you didn't see the chemistry we had at the penguin exhibit, it was simply magical! Both of us leaning in slowly, an almost kiss until you interrupted with cotton candy!” Dan waxed lyrically.  
“Oh, yeah totally especially the part where you claimed to already be in a relationship and that you couldn't be with someone who had a kid anyways,” I huffed, rolling my eyes at the immature child before me.  
“Wait, what?!” Phil gasped, still hung up on the fact that Dan and I had almost kissed. “I can't believe you man! You know I called her when we first met at the park!”  
“It's ok,” I placated, “nothing actually happened. I Promise.”  
“I'm glad because I wanted to be the one who got to kiss you,” Phil admitted shyly, a faint blush rising on his cheeks.   
I smiled up at him, silently agreeing with him.  
He looked back at me then, with a heated gaze that made my heart stutter. Before I knew what was happening we were leaning into each other, our lips connecting and sending out tiny sparks of electricity that I felt throughout my entire being. We pulled apart far too soon for my liking and I suddenly remembered that I was mad about being dibbed, and pushed him away.   
“I'm not an object!” I exclaimed, slightly pissed that I was being dibbed but also slightly glad that Phil had liked me that much to start with. And I was also still slightly flustered from the kiss.  
“You're right I'm sorry love, you're much more than that,” Phil said, grabbing my hands and looking deeply into my eyes again.   
“No it's ok, I guess.” I found myself saying absently, still caught up in his beautiful blue eyes. When did he become so breathtaking? ‘Probably after you kissed him’ I thought to myself.  
“I'm still here ya know!” Dan shouted, demanding attention after being ignored for more than a minute.  
“Oh I know, I'm just still pissed that you tried to kiss my girl,” Phil glared.   
“Woah, MY girl?” I questioned but now that I thought about it, I was oddly ok with it.  
I finally looked away from Phil’s beauty at the sound of a pathetic whimper, I glanced over and saw that the sound had come from Dan who looked slightly lost. “Are you okay?” I asked low key not really caring what his response was.  
“Why can't you love me? What does Phil have that I don't? I'm prettier!” He sobbed wiping desperately at his eyes even though there were no tears.   
“Love?? I never said that,” I defended myself, but honestly the more I thought about it the more I was accepting the idea that I could actually be in love with Phil. I mean he's been here for me when I had no one else, my thoughts were interrupted though by a loud bubbling giggle coming from the hallway behind me.   
I turned around and saw Audrey floating a foot off the ground, “Look mommy! I'm flying!” She squealed in delight.   
I blinked once. Twice. Three times and she was still there, “okay, what the hell is going on?” I shouted not entirely convinced that I wasn't completely insane.  
“Are you okay, babe?” Phil asked, reaching up and placing a cool hand across my forehead to check my temperature.  
“Am I okay? Audrey is FLOATING!” I yelled pointing at my daughter who was at this point walking up the wall.   
“Nope, I'm definitely not okay,” I said.   
Suddenly a shrill beeping sounded throughout the house but nobody appeared to hear it except for me, “do any of you hear that sound?” I asked just to clarify.   
“No,” they all said in perfect unison.   
‘Well damn,’ I thought ‘I really am crazy.’  
The sound was steadily becoming louder with each beep, until I was suddenly staring up at my bedroom ceiling, I could tell this because there was a brown water stain that kind of looked like a giraffe right above my bed.   
‘Just a dream’ I thought as I reached over to turn the alarm off.  
I sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep from my eyes as I recalled the rapidly fading memory of the strange dream. I brought my hands up to my lips, remembering my kiss with Phil. I quickly shook off the feelings that were pooling in my stomach, and stood up to get ready for the day.


	14. The Aftermath

“It was just a dream,” I said aloud. I then walked out to the living room to get my clothes from the wash, when I saw Phil laying on the couch snuggling a pillow, and snoring softly.  
I keep walking, trying not to look at him as I quickly grab my clothes from the dryer and started my retreat back to my room.  
“Ren?” Phil asked groggily. ‘So close,’ I thought as I turn around and smile at him, avoiding his eyes. His bed head made his hair stick up in all directions and his face squinted up, still adjusting to the light room.   
“Hey,” I answer, “I'm gonna get ready, then I'll make breakfast.” I turned around and walked back to my room before Phil could question anything. As soon as I got to my room I shut the door with my back and slid down to the floor.   
“What am I doing? I can't avoid him all day. It's just plain rude. It was only a dream, get a grip,” I scolded myself quietly.   
However, I couldn't help the small smile that appeared on my face remembering the kiss that we shared in the dream. I stood up, my stomach filling with anticipation at seeing him again. I walked over to my bed and deposited the clothes on it. I went through them and decided on a casual red knee length dress and white wedges.   
After my shower, I stepped out, dried myself off, and kept my hair in its natural state. After I was dressed, I started on my makeup. I decided on winged eyeliner and put on my Chapstick. After applying my deodorant and perfume, I left my shoes and purse by my door, going to wake Audrey up.   
I walked through the living room over to her door, slowly opening it. I walked in and saw that Audrey was already dressed and coloring in her notebook.   
“Well, good morning, little bird. You're up early,” I said stroking her hair and joining her on the bed.   
“Do I have to go to school today? I don't want to,” she asked with hope in her eyes.   
She had only missed two days so far this whole year. I pondered the decision. A day in actually sounded great.   
I smiled and patted her head,” I suppose but only this once. I'll call your school and tell them you're sick today,” I said kissing her head and then leaving the room to find my phone. I would have to call Victor to let him know I wasn't coming in as well.  
I dialed the schools number and informed them that Audrey was sick and would not be attending today. Phil gave me a worried look. After I ended the call he startled me with his voice right behind me.  
“Is Audrey okay?” He asked, I blushed at the sudden closeness. I nodded, smiled and turned around.   
“We're playing hooky today. Want to join us? Just planning on staying in, watching television and playing games. It's a rainy day, and honestly, Audrey has barely missed school this year so I'm okay with one day off for her. Plus, she's been really tired. She’s still getting use to the insulin pump,” I said, my eyes flicking to his lips before I could stop them. I look away quickly but the damage was done.   
Oh my god. Why did I do that? He saw it. Shit.   
He chuckled,” that sounds amazing. If you don't mind me hanging around, I'd love to join in on your hooky activities,” he said, his eyes looking at my lips momentarily, and looking back up into my eyes as if asking for permission. I nodded slightly. We both leaned in slowly.   
“Mom?” Audrey said coming out of her room and walking up to us. We both jumped apart, and blushed.   
“What do you need, honey?” I asked flustered.   
“I'm going to go back to sleep. I'm really tired. I wanted to tell you,” she said turning around and closing her door.  
I slowly turned back to Phil, and avoided his eyes by looking down. I felt a hand softly go behind my neck and a finger lift my chin gently forcing me to look into his eyes. He smiled shyly and leaned down, my eyes fluttered closed as his lips met mine. We stayed like that for a minute our lips locked but not moving as if afraid that if we moved it would all be a dream again.   
There was movement and suddenly our lips were in a proper kiss sliding together perfectly and making sparks appear behind my eyes. At some point my hands ended up in his hair pulling his face impossibly closer to mine needing this, needing to feel that he wanted me as much as I wanted him. His hand pulled my neck gently towards him while his other hand trailed down to my waist, pulling our bodies closer. Every second I was kissing him, my stomach became more filled with desire.  
I pulled away slowly and looked up at him smiling, our breath mingling in our close proximity. He smiled back and leaned his forehead against mine.   
“I've been waiting to do that for a while,” he said huskily. I chuckled softly and gently pecked his lips. I pulled away gently, walking backwards, and winking at him before I turned around and walked into the kitchen. I stood in front of the coffee maker, turning it on and waiting for it to start to brew, when I felt a pair of arms sneak around my waist. I smiled and leaned back into him. He kissed my cheek and turned me around.   
“So, will you go on a date with me?” He asked looking into my eyes and pushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. I bit my bottom lip and nodded.   
“I'd love too,” I replied gently kissing his cheek. “You still want to hang around for the day?”   
He nodded. “Oh yeah. It's only,” he paused to look at the time, “ 7:45. I'm not going anywhere,” he said, pulling me back to when he said the exact words at the hospital weeks ago. We then were pulled into a trance, looking into each other's eyes. A loud beep caused us to jump and realize that the coffee was done.   
“Want a cuppa?” I asked him with a big grin.   
He nodded, “ Yes please,” he said excitedly. I got out the milk and sugar for us and let him make his own. After he was done, I then made mine and we walked to the living room, snuggling on the couch and watching whatever was on the television.


	15. Egg-cellent

I was woken by clanging in the other room. I jolted out of bed and ran towards the kitchen, grabbing my collectors edition, Darth Vader lightsaber off the wall, and burst into dining room ready to defend my home “Sith” style.   
Instead of a masked intruder raiding my cupboards, I was greeted by the sight of Phil and Audrey elbow deep in a mysterious yellow concoction. My sleep addled brain was still trying to make sense of what was happening when the light Saber went off, jarring me completely out of my reprieve, and causing me to drop it with a yelp.   
They both looked up at the sudden noise, and laughed once they realized the situation, leaving me to flush red. I cautiously picked up the lightsaber and went to return it to my wall mount, not wanting to harm one of Henry's most prized possessions. After securing the weapon back in place I went back out to see how Phil and Audrey were getting along with the yellow substance.   
“Morning!” I said cheerfully, heading to the kitchen to brew coffee and resolutely ignoring their incredulous stares.  
While the machine heated up I turned around and leaned against the counter, inspecting the damage done to my home from the two breakfast making miscreants. There was flour coating almost every available surface and a bowl filled with what could only be burnt sausage on top of the fridge.  
I turned my attention the the culprits themselves next, seeing even more flour in Phil’s hair, like he pushed it out of his face forgetting the powder smeared all over his hand. Audrey was no better off as she had no less than three eggs dripping off the front of her Eevie Pokémon pajamas, slowly sliding to the floor where it was creating a growing pile of goop.   
The coffee maker dinged it's completion and I turned around to grab it when Audrey exclaimed loudly, “Mommy! We can see your butt!”  
I froze.   
Glancing down I saw that I was only wearing a loose tank top that barely reached the top of my thighs, having stripped the rest of my clothes off before going to bed last night. Heat crept up my neck spreading over my cheeks, turning me into a walking tomato. I spun around grabbing at the hem of my shirt, forcing it lower and willing it to swallow me up completely.  
“Don't look!” I yelled, scrambling out of the kitchen at lightning speed, barrelling into my room and slamming the door shut.   
I yank the offending piece of clothing off, banishing it to clothes hamper where it could think about it's shamefully tiny length. I grabbed my longest pair of pants, shoving my legs in before pulling an overly large jumper over my head, hoping that the excess in clothing now would make up for my previous nudity. I walk towards the door before thinking better of it and doubling back to snag a pair of socks, triple checking that everything was covered before finally joining them once again.  
I walk into the kitchen avoiding the other occupants and beelining straight to my forgotten coffee cup, gulping down half before finally glancing over to them. “I am so sorry about that.”   
“Cute butt,” Phil blurted before freezing up. “No I mean I didn't, it's not, or I mean, it is cute but I didn't look...well I looked but not a lot?” The tips of his ears were turning a dark shade of red, as well as his face. “I'm just going to get back to my crepes.”   
I looked at the mustard yellow mixture. “Is that what it’s suppose to be?” I joked, trying to lighten the mood a little.   
Audrey giggled and nodded excitedly. “Phil got here a little bit ago, and we were going to surprise you but then I dropped the pan with the eggs and you woke up,”she confessed, her face falling.   
“It's okay, sweetheart. It's the thought that counts. Do you need any help?” I questioned, laughing at their disheveled appearances.   
“Are you questioning my culinary expertise?” Phil demanded as he spun around, brandishing a whisk, and flinging batter across the room. Bits of it landed on my cheek, so I glared coldly at Phil, making him cringe and reach for the paper towels, wiping it gently off of my face while mumbling an oops.   
Unbeknownst to him, I grabbed an egg from the carton next to me smashing it over his head, his face contorting into a mask of shock at the sudden attack.   
Before he could react further a cloud of white puff overtook the kitchen. Audrey had dumped the rest of the flour out of the bag for her contribution to the short lived fight.   
A silence fell over the house as the powder settled. We all exchanged glances, then clutched our stomachs as we fell to the ground laughing. Tears streamed down our faces, creating track marks.   
I stood up, still chuckling slightly and reached out to grab Audrey's hand and haul her up when my foot slipped on the forgotten egg mess, sending me sprawling backwards into Phil's lap, his arms instinctively wrapping around my waist cushioning my fall.   
Audrey giggled as I looked back at him smiling at how ridiculous we both must look, “you got a little something there,” I smirked and pointed to his face.  
“I'm just baking my skin, it's the newest trend,” he stated as if it was obvious.   
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Phil and I jumped apart, me rushing to get the door and him struggling to get up from the slippery, goo-ridden floor. I swung the door open and was greeted by a face I hadn't seen in weeks.  
Dan.


	16. Damn Daniel

Dan’s PoV  
“Hi,” I greeted, nervously playing with the sleeves of my jumper. She gave a friendly smile that I could barely make out through the thick coat, of what I guessed was flour, all over her face.   
“Hey, Dan,” She replied, moving to the side, allowing me room to enter the foyer. She then closed the door, and beckoned me to follow her. I stopped in my tracks and stared.   
“What the hell? Did a bomb go off in here?” I laughed out, looking at the completely demolished kitchen.   
“More or less,” she smiled and chuckled, her gentle laugh resonating in my head.  
“Hey Dan! Didn't know you were coming over here,” Phil said cheerily walking up with Audrey up on his hip.  
Audrey then squealed and jumped down from Phil's arms running over to me, enveloping me in a sticky hug. I patted her head chuckling nervously, unsure of what to do with the tiny human. She suddenly pulled back and grabbed my hand tugging me along behind her as she led me further into the house.   
She stopped in front of a door with her name on it and turned around, “no boy has ever been in here ya know, mom says I can't have a boyfriend yet but when I can will you be my boyfriend?” I gaped at her not knowing how to respond, would I be a pedophile if I said yes? But it would make her sad if I say no. “Mom says I can only have nice boyfriends, and you're nice to me.” Audrey said melting my heart a little.   
“Umm..maybe one day kiddo?” I reason, not giving a straight answer and risk disappointing her.   
She smiled brightly at me, accepting my response and pulled me down to her level where she kissed my cheek, giggling madly. I blushed and smiled down at her as I stood back up, gesturing to her forgotten door, “shall we?”  
Ren’s PoV:   
After Audrey dragged Dan towards her room, I slowly crept up behind Phil, who was attempting to wash the flour off his face, but was really making it even more streaky. With a mischievous smirk, I crept closer and then leaned forward on my tiptoes, and whispered “boo,” directly into his ear.   
He jumped, letting out a yelp before he turned around to glare at me. “That was dangerous ya know, I'm a Pokemon master,” he said lowly. “My Swampert is level 100.”  
“Oh yeah?” I tease, “my Scyther is a shiny level 100.”   
“I have three shinies,” he smirked putting his hands on my waist and pulling me closer.  
“Wow, that’s super impressive,” my arms were round his neck and we were leaning towards each other, our mouths centimetres apart.   
“I'm an impressive person,” he whispered huskily.   
“Mmm, I love it when you talk nerdy to me,” I mumble seductively, closing the distance between us. Our lips gently moved with each other. One of his hands trailed up the side of my body, until he got to my neck. He gently pulled my head forward, deepening the kiss. Pure bliss. His tongue then ran along my bottom lip, begging for entrance. I smirked, playfully denying it. His hand on my waist pulled our bodies together leaving no room between us. I gasped, and he slipped his tongue into my mouth, both of ours fighting for dominance. I pulled away nipping at his lip when the need for air became too much.  
He began gently kissing my cheek working his way down to my neck. I leaned my head back giving him more access. My hands moving from his shoulders to his hair, pulling him closer and giggling as his eyelashes tickled my jaw. He smiled against my neck before working his way back up and continuing the kiss.   
Dan’s PoV:  
Audrey was showing me her American girl dolls, and telling me all their names. “This is Hannah, Kelly, and Taylor,” she pridefully said. I smiled at her and nodded along, memorising every detail in case she quizzes me again to see if I was paying attention.   
“How do you play with them?” I asked as she handed me Taylor saying that I had to brush the doll's hair.   
“I tell them secrets,” she whispers inconspicuously.   
“Oh yeah,” I smile at her wondering what kind of secrets a seven year old could possibly have. “Could you tell me one?”  
“If I told you then it wouldn't be a secret anymore dummy!”   
“Aw, c’mon! Not even one?” I asked, genuinely curious now.   
“Well, I guess. But if you tell anyone about it we can't be friends anymore! Got it?” She said fiercely while thrusting her pinky out to me. I interlock our fingers, declaring ultimate secrecy and chuckle at her antics.   
“Mommy and Phil kissed!” She whispered so softly that I had to strain to hear the words.  
My heart dropped.   
I sat up straight and gently put her doll down before I stood up.  
“Where are you going?” Audrey exclaimed, quickly standing up as well.   
I looked at her and forced a smile, “I'm a bit thirsty, I'll be right back, okay? You stay here.” I walk towards the door and open it looking behind me as she sits back down, grinning up at me, she picks up the doll again going back to the game without me.   
I shut the door softly behind me and take a breath to calm myself. What was I so worked up for anyway? It's not like I'm dating Ren. ‘No but you want to be’ a traitorous part of me said.   
I shake my head and start towards the kitchen, really needing that drink now.   
I walk around the corner and my heart stops for the second time before falling completely out of my chest.   
Phil's kissing her.  
Why is Phil kissing her?   
This isn't right, that's suppose to be me. I'm suppose to be the one that gets to be here for Ren and Audrey. Yeah well you kinda blew that at the zoo. My face feels hot and my throat gets tight, restricting my breathing, and I gasp.   
Ren and Phil break apart, all smiles and blushes as they apologise but I can't hear anything. I choke out a half assed excuse about a meeting with our manager before fleeing through the front door.   
I make it all the way to the car before I go to start it, and realise I still have Audrey's doll brush in my hand.   
That could have been me.


	17. The confrontation

Phils PoV  
After Dan left the house, I scratched the back of my neck, embarrassed that we had been caught. I slowly turned to Ren seeing a slight red tint to her face.   
“That was nerve wracking,” she whispered, mostly to herself.  
“Yeah, no kidding,” I agreed. “I should probably get home though. Dan said something about the manager texting him. So I'm assuming she wants us both.” She nodded and fiddled with the hem of her jumper.   
“I'm sorry. I got a little carried away,” she nervously said. She looked up at me with worry in her eyes.   
“Why are you apologizing? You did nothing wrong. I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy that,” I admitted with a smirk. She softly chuckled and nodded her head.   
I then went to grab my coat and slip my shoes on. Ren had followed me to the front door. “Well, I'll text you,” I said softly. She smiled and nodded. She leaned up to me and pressed a quick kiss to my lips. She pulled away as soon as it had started. I smile down at her and opened the door, walking out to flag down a taxi and make my way home, she watched me go from the doorway.  
“I'll look forward to that text. Bye Phil,” she flirted with a wink. I returned my goodbyes and hopped into the cab, settling in for the short ride.   
As the cab pulled up to my apartment complex, I fished out the amount the ride had cost. After paying the cab driver, I got out and made my way to the door.   
After the long exhausting trip up to my flat, I opened the door and entered.   
“Dan, I'm home,” I yelled, slipping off my shoes at the front door and pushing them into our shoe cupboard, and walking further into the flat. I heard footsteps walking towards me.   
“What are you doing here,” Dan questioned. “ I thought you were going to be at Rens all day.” He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.  
I shrugged off my coat and hung it up on the coat rack. “You said something about a meeting with our manager. I figured she'd need both of us,” I said with confusion. Dan’s eyes widened slightly.  
“Oh, yeah I read the text wrong I guess. She was just confirming the meeting for next week,” Dan lamley said, wringing his hands together.   
“Oh..okay,” I studied his demeanor and form. “Are you okay, mate?”   
He nodded, and awkwardly laughed. “Perfectly fine. Promise,” he said unconvincingly. His eyes were everywhere except my face.   
“If you say so,” i reply, turning to head to the shower, needing to wash off the muck from my morning.   
“Are you and Ren dating?” Dan blurted looking suddenly irritated.   
“Um, yeah I think so. I mean I asked her out but we haven't really set a certain time yet. She's so busy with Audrey,” I admit, wondering why he was suddenly asking about it.   
“Why didn't you tell me? That kinda seems like the thing you should tell your best mate, I mean what if I liked her too?” He rushed out really looking pissed now.   
“What the hell Dan? Why are you telling me this now? You should have said something if you liked her, it's not like I did it on purpose anyway, she needed someone and I was there,” I huffed back not understanding why Dan was being this way.   
“She almost kissed me too, you know, it's not like you're that important to her, it could have been anyone,” as soon as Dan said that his face paled, as if he just realised what had come out.   
“I just came home to help with our manager, who probably didn't even text you by the way, and am honestly feeling so attacked right now. What the hell mate, how was I even suppose to know you liked her? You never said anything I mean, isn't that kinda something you tell your best mate?” I snapped, throwing his words back at him.   
“Whatever. It's not like we were going to go anywhere. I kinda screwed that up,” Dan confessed, sitting down on the couch and putting his head in his hands. “I got scared and I told her I was seeing someone and even if we were to get together, I couldn't handle Audrey. I feel like such a dick. Sorry about that comment too by the way, she doesn't seem like the kinda person to use you like that.”   
I looked at him for a moment before sitting next to him in the couch, rubbing his back comfortingly, “you are a dick.”  
Dans face dropped into a ‘really’ look before he huffed out a chuckle shaking his head, “whatever mate.” He looked up at me with a serious face. “Are you happy?”   
“Yeah, I really am,” I smile over at him.   
He lets out another breath before grinning back, his dimples coming out, “then I’m happy for you too.”   
“You want to order some takeout and play Mario kart tonight? Maybe film?” I asked Dan. He smiled and nodded.   
“That sounds really good, actually. I haven't uploaded a video in over a month,” Dan nervously chuckled.   
“Such a slacker,” I joked, pushing him over on the couch before getting up to grab the camera and lights.   
Once all the equipment was set up, we positioned ourselves in frame before beginning.   
“Citizens of the Internet!”  
I glanced over to Dan smiling as I adjusted the flower crown on my head, everything's going to be fine.


	18. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some things were changed in this chapter so I'm reposting it.

It had been about a month since Phil and I became official.  
“Oh my god! This is amazing,” I screamed, jumping up and down with Victor. Our dance had been chosen to be the one that the show would use. We had turned on the radio in the studio and were currently dancing and celebrating.   
I had a sudden burst of energy and decided to do cartwheel after cartwheel for a few seconds, eventually landing on my butt and laughing hysterically. Victor joined me and went to the back room, returning with plastic cups and champagne. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow.   
“What?” He questioned. “We deserve it.” There was a sudden ding signaling the front door, but neither of us paid attention to it. Victor popped off the cork of the champagne bottle and it went flying. He then poured a fair amount of the bubbly liquid into the cups and handed one to me.   
“To your beautiful face and dance moves for getting us a dance on one of the world's most prestigious dance competitions,” victor toasted, raising his glass. We clinked glasses and sipped our champagne.   
“What? That's amazing,” someone suddenly exclaimed. I turned to see Dan with a big goofy grin on his face. I smiled and jogged over to him, giving him a big bear hug.   
“Come to join the festivities?” I asked with a posh accent. He laughed and nodded.   
“Not really, but I'll take what I can get,” he said. Victor then came over with a cup for Dan.   
“So, what's up Dan? You need something?” I asked him. He shook his head.   
“Not really. I did want to let you know that Phil and I got 4 tickets to see The Phantom of the Opera, and we wanted to know if you and Audrey wanted to go. It's in a week.” He said holding up two tickets. My eyes widened. The Phantom of the Opera was Henry's favorite play. Whenever it was playing at our local theater, him and I would go and see it together. I was sucked into a memory.   
“Babe! Are you ready to go? I got us dinner on the way home. Clarissa is watching Audrey tonight so don't worry about her,” Henry said excitedly, setting the McDonald's on the table. He handed me my grilled chicken sandwich and salad.   
I smiled gratefully. “Thank you, honey. I just worry about her. I know she's almost three, but that's my baby girl.” He chuckled and came over to me, getting on his knees and taking my hands, kissing my knuckles softly.  
“It'll be okay, sweetheart. We’ll see her later tonight. Clarissa will be here in a few minutes to watch Audrey and then we’ll go,” he said, lovingly.   
He picked himself off the ground and ate his burger quickly. We both heard stomping coming from down the stairs, and we chuckled, knowing it was Audrey.   
“Daddy!” Audrey yelled running into Henry's arm.   
“Auddie!” He yelled back, picking her up and spinning her around. “How's my princess?” He said, attacking her with kisses. She went into a fit of giggles.   
“Daddy, stop! That tickles,” she panted, squirming in his arms. I smiled lovingly at the sight of them. These two people were all I needed to be happy for the rest of my life. He eventually set her down, and asked her about her day.  
While Audrey was talking to him, there was a knock on the door. I got up and opened it to see Clarissa. She smiled brightly at me.   
“I'm here to get the little princess, so you and your fiancé can have a proper date night,” she said, smiling. I pulled her into a hug and let her into the house. Audrey came running up to Clarissa with her arms wide open.  
“Aunt Clary!” She screamed before attacking her with hugs.   
Henry came up behind me with my purse and shoes, handing them to me. I slipped on the shoes, and we walked over to Audrey.   
“I love you, sweetheart. Be good for Aunt Clary, okay?” I said to Audrey. She nodded and hugged me. I returned the hug and kissed her cheek. She then let go and turned to Henry.   
“I love you, daddy,” she whispered, embracing him tightly.   
“I love you too, little one,” he said back, while kissing her on the cheek. “When I get home, we’ll come up and see if you're still awake. If you are we can read a book together, okay?”   
She nodded eagerly, grinning hugely up at Henry as he started their trademark goodbye, “can't stay blue jay.”  
“Toodle-oo kangaroo!” Audrey sing-songed back. He let her down off his hip, and he and I left the house for the theater.  
The play had ended and were making our way back to the car, Henry serenading me with terrible renditions of the show as he opened the door for me. Once we got out of the parking lot and onto the main road, Henry looked over at me briefly before refocusing on the road,”I got a call from the wedding venue today,” he started.   
“Did we get it or was it already booked?” I asked worriedly, we had already tried booking three other places but they all came back fully booked and with only two months left before the big day, I was getting anxious.   
Henry beamed over at me quickly before turning back to the road and stating excitedly, “We got it!”  
I squealed reaching over and grabbed his knee, leaning my head onto his shoulder in relief. He looked down at me lovingly when suddenly bright lights filled the dark car, illuminating things in an eerie glow. I looked forward and saw a car heading straight for us, driving in the wrong lane and swerving wildly. Henry tried to steer the car out of the way but there would be no time as it was coming closer at break neck speeds. I squeezed my eyes shut and braced for impact as I thought of Audrey hoping we would be okay for her. I felt the car jerk to the left angling the car so that the impact would happen on the drivers side.  
“I love you,” Henry said, grabbing my hand. I gasped out the start of my response when I was suddenly consumed by darkness.   
End flashback   
January 23rd was when the accident happened. It was years ago but that memory never faded, forever ingrained into my soul.   
“Ren, you okay?” Dan questioned. I jolted out of my state, and realized what today was.   
“It's the anniversary,” I said, near tears. “How could I have forgotten? Oh god, I have to go i’m sorry.” I ran to grab my bag and shoes, slipping them on, running out the door.   
Dans PoV:  
“What? Anniversary?” I said, more to myself than anything.   
“Shit, that's right,” Victor said with sorrow, as he went to shut off the radio.   
“Wait, what happened today?” I asked him. He looked at me sympathetically.  
“It's the day Henry died. She's probably going to go to his grave. I've been going with her for the past 2 years,” he said, worried. “She needs someone with her. She's a wreck usually on this day.”   
Phil was in a seminar for another 4 hours. His phones off. I'd have to go and find her.   
“Where is the graveyard?” I asked.   
Victor told me the address, and smiled. “You're a good man. Thanks for doing this.” I smiled back at him and said my goodbyes, leaving the studio, and heading to the graveyard.   
The graveyard was fairly easy to find. After I parked, I walked around the tombstones, looking for Ren. Up ahead I saw a person sitting in front of a grave. I slowly walked up, trying not to startle whoever it was, if it wasn't Ren.   
As I moved closer, I heard soft sobs coming from the body in front of me. Ren. I sat next to her and waited for her to notice my presence, not wanting to interrupt her grieving.   
She finally looked up and saw me, her eyes widening softly.  
“Wh-what are you doing here?” She whispered, rubbing her eyes.   
“Victor told me you needed someone, so I'm here.”  
She looked down, tears falling from her eyes again. “I can't believe I forgot what today was.” She said, now looking up and wiping her cheeks . “Henry and I were on our way back home from seeing The Phantom of the Opera. It was two months before our wedding. That's when we were in a car accident and he didn't make it. Died on impact.”   
I looked up at her and saw her jaw shaking with unshed tears. I didn't say anything, I just shifted closer and grabbed her hand, offering my silent support. She laid her head on my shoulder and stared blankly at the gravestone in front of us.   
We stayed there for a while, the sun has started setting and the temperature dropped. She stood up and walked up to the tombstone, turning slightly and holding her hand out for me to take, bringing me up to stand beside her. Ren looked back down before she started talking, her voice stronger than before but still wobbly with all the pent up emotions.  
“Hey Henry, I'm sorry I haven't visited in awhile. I almost forgot what day it was actually, but you know me,” she broke off and laughed breathily. “ Audrey's getting so big now, she's started second grade this year. I wish you were here to see this. Audrey gave us a big scare about five months ago, turns out she's diabetic. She's okay now but she inherited your sweet tooth, I've had to hide all the sugar out of reach,” she stopped again this time squeezing my hand before taking a deep breath and starting once again. “ this is Dan by the way, he's amazing with Audrey. He's really something, you would have loved him I know.”  
I held her hand tighter my eyes burning at the words, I looked over at Ren and saw that she was staring at me with watery eyes. My heart skips and I keep my gaze on her as I say, “I promise I'll help look after your girls, Henry.”   
Ren starts crying again but she's smiling up at me too. I pull her into a hug as we stand there a while longer. When we finally pull apart I step away and give her some space and privacy as she says her final goodbyes for the day.   
She rejoins me and linked our arms, walking back to the parking lot together, “you know Henry always said that graveyards reminded him of buffy,” Ren said breaking the silence and laughing quietly.   
“Buffy, the vampire slayer?” I ask.   
“Yeah, he loved the show, made me watch every season so many times, I can quote it,” she said. “We went as Angel and Buffy to his Uni’s Halloween party.”   
I laughed. “Wow. Phil happens to be quite fond of Buffy, too. Loved watching the show growing up. He wanted to marry Sarah Michelle Gellar.”   
She looked at me, then looked up at the sky and shook her head laughing. “Nerds.”  
Once we got to the parking lot I walked her over to her car, opening the door for her, before leaning down and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Drive safe. I'm a phone call away if you need me. Always.”


	19. What Happends In New York, Stays On Twitter Forever

It had been about a week since the Anniversary of Henry's death. Phil had been told at the seminar that he was to go to America for a week, and help with some international project. He had just left this morning.  
I slowly crept out of Audrey's room after lulling her to sleep, wincing as the door creaked. My phone then beeped, signaling a message. I grabbed my phone, set the house alarm, and walked over to my room to get ready for bed.   
After I was situated into my pajamas, I pulled up the text on my phone.   
Phil: Hey babe, just landed in NY. Flight was hell. Miss you guys already xxx  
Me: that's good to hear, I mean the you landed part. Lol We miss you too. Audrey was asking where you were at dinner. Xxx  
A few seconds later there was a reply  
Phil: oh yeah? She's so cute. Well, I gotta find my luggage, and with my luck it'll take forever. Will text you when I get to the hotel.   
Me: okay. No promises I'll still be up. So goodnight Xxx  
There was no reply so I put my phone on do not disturb mode, after plugging it in. I fell asleep rather quickly.  
Phil never texted back I wasn't really worried, because of the huge time difference and jet lag. I decided I wouldn't text him, unless he texted me because he had a lot to do.   
It was a slow day at the dance studio. Victor and I were working on our slow dance to Thinking out loud, perfecting it and memorizing the steps to teach later. It was soon time for me to go pick Audrey up from school so I grabbed my bag, unlocking my phone as I yelled out a goodbye to Victor and walked out to my car. ‘still no message from phil’ I thought. I put my phone aside as I pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road that headed up to the elementary. 15 minutes later Audrey was secured into her car seat and we were on our way again, headed to the house.  
After dinner I decide whether or not to call Phil, I look at the time and see its 8 pm I make the quick conversion and know that it's like 3pm where he is.   
I decide to text Phil asking if got settled last night. I get Audrey bathed and in bed while I wait for a reply.   
By the time 11 rolls around, I still haven't gotten a response so I decide to call him. I wasn't going to say it aloud but I was getting sort of worried.   
I open my phone and hit his name to start the call. After the third ring I get sent to voicemail, ‘that's odd,’ I think. ‘maybe he's just busy.’ I leave a quick message asking if he was alright and telling him to call me when he gets the chance.  
I then went to open up Twitter. Dan had convinced me to make one a few weeks ago and I had been addicted to it ever since. I scrolled through some of my feed, looking at the witty posts and retweeting the ones that made me laugh. I was just about to call it a night and turn my phone off when I take a look at the last tweet.   
What?  
There in front of me, was a picture of Phil kissing another girl. This wasn't an accidental kiss. His arms were securely around her waist, one of his hands sliding under her shirt in the back. My throat started to close up, and tears started pooling in my eyes. I quickly shut off my phone and tossed it on the bed next to me. I cried myself to sleep that night for the first time since the accident. 

I wake up after a night of restless sleep and look over to my phone, still sitting where it had landed after I threw it. Knowing that I probably shouldn't, I picked it up and turned it back on to see that I had a missed call and three texts from Phil. There wasn't a voicemail but the texts were all saying that he was fine, the hotel was great, and that he was getting the chance to meet a ton of fans at a party later that night. I don't reply. Instead I called the school to let them know Audrey would be arriving by bus today.   
I then call Dan, who answers sleepily.   
“Hello?”He grumbles, slight irritation in his voice.  
“Hey, have you checked Twitter lately?” I ask, not really sure how I should broach the subject. Phil was his best mate after all.   
“No? Is something wrong? Should I have? Oh god they've started a new meme haven't they,” he groans.  
I chuckled and shake my head brogue remembering that he can't see me, “ no, well I don't think so but never mind. I was just wondering if you could come over I know it's early but I need you. I'll make breakfast,” I beg. My throat started becoming thick with unshed tears making my voice unclear. “Audrey's leaving for the bus soon. Please.”   
“Yeah, no yeah I'll be right over,” he says, concern clear in his voice.   
I get Audrey awake and ready for school and am kissing her head as I usher her to the bus stop when Dan pulls up. As soon as I see him, it feels like a flood breaks loose, and I jog to him, enveloping him in my arms. He returns the hug quickly and looks at me worried.  
“Ren, what happened?” He said after we re-entered the house and sat on the couch. I shook my head and looked up at him.   
“Your best friend is an asshole. That's what happened,” I growled with venom in my voice.  
Dan looked taken aback by my sudden anger. “What did he do exactly to earn that title?”   
I unlocked my phone and scrolled through my Twitter feed until the picture popped up and I handed it over to Dan. I watched for his reaction. When he saw who it was his eyes widened and he cursed.   
“Fuck, Phil. He's an idiot. God. I'm going to give him a piece of my mind. How could he hurt you like that? I'll call him right now,” he said dialing Phil's phone. After a few rings he picked up with a pissed hello.   
“What, Dan?” Phil growled, frustrated at being woken up.   
“You have a lot of explaining to do. How could you ki-,” Dan started but was cut off by a girl grabbing Phil's phone and yelling ‘hi’ into it. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Phil?” Dan yelled into the receiver, jumping up from the couch and pacing the length of the living room in his frustration.   
“Nothing. Shh. We're sleeping. Goodnight,” Phil said before ending the phone call. As soon as the call ended, I lost any resistance I had left and started crying big fat sloppy tears. Dan came over and pulled me into his arms, stroking my hair and whispering that everything would be okay.   
After what felt like days, but had only been 45 minutes of crying and Dan comforting me, I started to calm down.  
“Do you want me to stay over until the trip is done?” He questioned. “You can take the week off from work and I can pick Audrey up after school.”   
I looked at Dan, not wanting to be such an inconvenience but really not sure if I was going to be okay enough to be alone, ‘god I sound like such a baby,’ I thought. I nod at him and thank him.   
“I'm sorry. You don't have to, actually. I'm acting like a baby,” I said changing my mind.   
Dan grabbed my hand. “No you're not. You're hurt. Phil is an idiot. I'm going to stay here, okay? I'll help out around the house this week.”   
I smiled up at him and squeezed his hand. “Thanks, Dan. You're an amazing friend.”   
He gave me a lopsided smirk and stood up saying he had to go back to his flat to get clothes and his computer stuff.   
That week he was great. He cooked dinner with me, helped Audrey with her homework and helped me with household chores.   
By the time the week ended, it was the day that Phil would come back.   
Dan left to go pick him up from the airport as he always had. Before I knew it, they had arrived at my house.   
I was sitting on the couch, working on some forms for the studio when the front door opened. I was too caught up in my work to hear it. I was pulled it of my trance with a kiss to my cheek. I immediately smiled thinking it was Audrey but was surprised to find Phil. I immediately put the papers down, walked into my bedroom and slammed the door shut. The tears then started flowing and they wouldn't stop.   
I heard a faint ‘what's wrong with her’ from Phil.  
“Really? You don't know what's wrong?” Dan scoffed, his voice raising. “You are blind and daft if you don't know what's wrong.”  
“Woah, woah, woah. What the hell, Dan?” He said back.   
There was no response. I heard a pair of footsteps coming towards my door, and prayed it wasn't Phil.  
“Ren. Can I come in?” Dan asked through the door.   
I cracked it open, allowing him just enough space to enter and then slamming it again. He looked at me and automatically pulled me into a hug. He led the hug over to the bed.   
Dan stroked my hair. “It's going to be okay, Ren. I promise. We’ll figure this out.”   
“I don't know what to do. I can't even look at him. Oh god, what have I done? What did I do wrong? Why would he do that? I'm so confused. I don't understand, Dan.” I said, starting to have a panic attack.   
“What's wrong with me? Why aren't I good enough?” I whispered, tears falling down my cheeks.   
Dan put his hands on either side of my face and looked into my eyes. “Hey, hey, hey. You are the most amazing,kind, crazy, funny girl I've ever met. Nothing is wrong with you, Ren. You are perfect in my eyes. And anyone who can't see that doesn't deserve you.” He then cleared his throat. “I know that you and Phil can work this out, though. Yes, he did something stupid and irresponsible and frankly, I don't care for what excuse he had because it didn't look like he was exactly stopping the kiss. I do know, though, that even if you do break up, we’ll all remain good friends. It's how we started and it's how it will be forever. I don't ever want you out of my life. In 5 years, who knows where we’ll be. All I do know is that I want you by my side though as one of my most trusted friends.” Dan then put his forehead against mine and sighed. “God, that was a long soliloquy, gotta catch my breath.”   
“What the fuck is going on here? You're cheating on me with Dan?” Phil said, suddenly in the room. We both jumped apart.   
I shook my head in anger. “No. I'm not. If anyone is cheating, it's you! You're an asshole. How dare you accuse me of cheating when you're the one who's been cheating all week while you've been gone? How are you going to explain this one, because right now, I'm only seeing one option,” I screamed, my face red.   
Phil looked at me with confusion, realization and then finally, guilt.   
I looked away not believing what I was seeing.   
“I-I can explain. She was old friend and things got carried away. We were both drunk and high, I swear I wasn't thinking about you, I jus-” he started.   
I turned to him. “Exactly. You weren't thinking. You knew you had a girlfriend back in London. You knew you were famous. You knew that if there was picture of it posted on social media, you'd be screwed. The thing is though, you. Didn't. Fucking. Care! I don't care what half-assed excuse you have for this Phil. We're done. Get out, please.” I said my voice shaking. “I can't look at you and Audrey is going to be home soon.” I turned to Dan, seeing him watch me with sympathy.   
I felt a hand on my waist, and turn me around. “Don't do this, Ren. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I'm begging you, please.” Phil pleaded,tears forming in his eyes. I shook my head. My tears starting up again.   
I pushed him off of me. He then fell to his knees and locked his arms around my waist. “I can't let you go. I won't. I know you don't want to do this. Please.”  
My sobs came back and I saw Dan slipping out the door to leave us alone.   
I took my hand off my mouth and closed my eyes. “I can't trust you anymore. You broke it when you decided to kiss her. You knew what you were doing. I'm glad I figured this out before we got really serious,” I choked out, my voice shaking before falling to a whisper. “Please. Just leave.”   
He then let his arms fall from my waist, picked himself up and left the room. I flinched a few seconds later when I heard the front door slam shut.  
Dan re-entered the room and pulled me into his arms gently. “I'm going to go home and grab some more clothes. I'm not leaving you until I know you're okay. Phil's going to stay at a friends house in Wembley for a few days.” I nodded. He gently kissed my forehead and left the room, then the house. As soon as he left, I crumpled to the floor in a heap of tears.   
What did I do?   
Phil's PoV:   
I was angry. So unbelievably angry. There weren't supposed to be phones or cameras at that party.   
My phone then buzzed signaling a text. I looked at it and saw it was her. Vanessa.   
Vanessa: Hey baby. You make it to London okay? I miss you already. Don't know how I'm going to make it without you here. ;)  
I threw my phone on my bed and started packing my bag, getting ready to leave for Wembley. I need a few days to clear my head.   
When I got to the train station, I bought a ticket and found out there was a train in 4 hours. I sighed and sat on one of the benches in the station. My phone then buzzed again. I pulled it out and saw it was Vanessa again.   
Vanessa: So I had a question.   
Phil: Hey. What's up?   
Vanessa: I like you. A lot. And I'm going to be headed to Manchester in about 2 months. You want to try a long distance until I get there? We had chemistry up here in NY.  
What? I sighed and closed my eyes, letting my head fall back momentarily.   
What do you have to lose? It's not like you're cheating.   
Anymore. A voice said in my head. I shook my head ignoring it.   
Phil: Sure. Sounds good.


	20. The Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oops.

It had been about two weeks since I found out about “Vanessa” and Phil. Dan had also found out that they were dating now, and had been over here with Audrey and I as much as possible. From what he said, she didn't sound exactly pleasant, but he might've hair been saying that for my benefit. I still hadn't seen or heard from Phil since the break up. I had to explain to Audrey why Phil no longer came around, telling her that he had a new girlfriend and couldn't come over anymore.   
Audrey was on spring break, and asked to stay at Abby’s house for a few days. The first night she left, Dan had asked to come over. I agreed and we broke out a bottle of bourbon and whiskey, getting quite pissed. Dan was in no shape to go home so I let him stay the night.   
I awoke in the middle of the night, crying and screaming from a nightmare where Audrey died. Dan came running into the room, joined me in the bed and pulled me into him, cradling me in his arms. I wrapped my arms around him and focused on his scent, fabric soap, slight musk, liquor and the lingering smell of his fading cologne.  
“What can I do? What do you need? I'll do whatever,” Dan whispered with sleep in his voice.   
I ignore him and respond with a question of my own “why did you lie to me about having a girlfriend when we were at the zoo?,” I whispered back, my hands falling off his shoulders as I scootch away, looking up, not really able to make out his face. I don't know why I was thinking about it but it suddenly seemed really important.   
“W-what?” Dan questioned,surprise in his voice. “Ren. I don't know honestly, I think I was just scared that I wouldn't know what to do, I'd never really been around kids before Audrey and I like-d you so much...why are you asking me this now?”   
“I don't know. It just came up in my head,” I lied, and leaned my head onto his shoulder, not wanting to look at him. The more I thought about Dan, the more I realized how much he had been there for me in the past month. Phil was always busy or had prior plans, but Dan was always able to come over or meet us out.   
I looked up at Dan and pulled his face to mine. “I'm sorry.” I whispered.  
“Wha-” Dan started with confusion, but was cut off with my lips softly attaching to his. He pulled away almost immediately. “Ren, we can't do this. I-” he looked away. “I don't want to be a rebound. I want it to actually mean something.” His voice falling to a whisper.  
I frown at him, and reach my hand up to cup his cheek again, forcing him to look me in the eye, “you're not the rebound. You could never be that. You mean too much to me, but I understand if you don't want this.” I stop and let my hand fall back into my lap.   
Dan sighed and pulled me to his chest again, shifting us so that we were laying down together. Neither of us said anything, just listening to the other breathe and eventually falling asleep to the rhythmic sound. 

Dan's PoV:  
I woke up at around 4 in the morning to a face full of hair, and Ren snuggled into my chest. Her face was pressed against my neck and one of my legs was between hers. I didn't want to wake her up but I needed to pee really bad. I shifted slightly and she grumbled, putting her arms around my waist, telling me to keep still.   
Well shit.   
“Ren, I will piss on your sheets if you don't let me go,” I threatened, still feeling the effects of all the liquor we drank. my face heated at the words that had left my mouth.   
She lifted her head and looked at me with an exaggerated frown before growling out, “I fucking dare you,” and laying back down.   
I gasp, just staring down at the she devil for a second before my bladder made itself known again. In true desperation now, I reach behind me and fumbled around for the glass of water, almost knocking it over as I finally grabbed hold of it. I pray to every god I know and even a few superheroes that she won't murder me after I did this.  
I held my breath and dumped half the glass over her legs, trying not to get any on myself. She let out a loud Yelp and jumped up, as soon as I was free I sprinted to the bathroom, slamming the door and locking it before finally getting sweet relief.   
I washed my hands, unlocked the door, then opened it. As soon as the door was open enough for me to walk out, I was met with a wall of water to my face. I sputtered and wiped the water from my eyes, already knowing who the culprit was.   
When I opened my eyes, I saw Ren standing there with an innocent smile on her face, all traces of the menace from before gone.   
“You're a truly evil woman,” I glared at her.   
“I'm evil?” She huffed, crossing her arms and sticking her nose in the air. “You're the one who got me all wet in the first place! Now my bed has water all in it!”  
“Wha-?! I had to pee! I did warn you! In fact, you're pretty lucky it's just water in your bed right now as far as I'm concerned,” I said, affronted.   
“Yes, well. I'm still blaming you, and we can't sleep in there anymore I put a towel down but it's still really wet,” she sighed.   
“Damn, ok I'm sorry, I'll take the couch you can have Audrey's bed.”  
Ren raised an eyebrow, “have you seen the size of Audrey's bed?” Oh...right, it was quite tiny wasn't it. “No I'll take the couch, you can have the floor as punishment,” she concluded, smiling to herself for the brilliant solution.   
“Yeah, no. Nice try I'm not sleeping on the floor.”   
“Well we both can't possibly fit on the couch,” she tried to reason. I smirked at her before taking off to the living room.   
“Get back here, Daniel James Howell! That's cheating!” she yelled after me. I giggled like a four year old being reprimanded.  
“I'm sorry! I can't hear you over the sound of this comfortable couch!” I cackled. My victory was short lived though because soon the breath was knocked out of me as Ren flopped down onto my stomach.   
“Get off!”I groaned trying in vain to get her to move, she somehow managed to maneuver herself around me, squeezing in to the small space between me and the couch.   
I glance down at her and smile. She encircled her arms back around my middle and pressed her face into my chest. I shifted so we would face each other, letting my hand automatically go up to play with her hair.   
She opened her eyes and smiled at me, I pulled my other arm out from underneath us and reached up to hold her cheek. Leaning in, my lips met hers for the second time tonight. She was the one to pull back this time with confusion in her eyes.  
“What? Dan, I thought-” she started, but I cut her off.   
“I don't care if I'm a rebound. I just know I want you,” I whispered, my finger tracing her jawline.   
She looked down. “I can't hurt you, Dan. You're too important to me.”   
“I don't care. I know you won't, just like I would never hurt you...again, sorry about before by the way,” I say referring to what is now dubbed, ‘The Zoo Incident’.  
Her hand slowly made its way to my cheek. Her fingers softly grazing my slightly chapped lips, causing anticipation. I moved my hand to her hip, softly resting it there before I leaned it and really kissed her. A current of electricity shot through my body, making me pull her closer to me. Her hand found the nape of my neck, pulling at the hair gently. I turn over, pressing my back into the couch and pulling her on top of me. I move one hand up to her jaw, tilting my head for a better angle so I could deepen the kiss. Her hand on my neck trails up to my hair grabbing a handful and pulling. I groan into the kiss and tighten my hold on her hip.   
I pull away for air and kiss down her neck, sucking a mark onto the skin where it meets her collarbone. Ren shifted, her legs falling to either side of my hips. My hand on her jaw trails down, and slips under the hem of her shirt, pushing it up as I kiss my way back up to her mouth. I nip at her bottom lip and she opens her mouth, letting me slip my tongue in.  
We keep kissing for a few more minutes, hot hands grabbing each other and mouths exploring, before Ren sits up, trying to take her shirt off but losing balance. I tighten my hold on her trying keep her upright but it was too late and we toppled off the couch, landing harshly on the floor with me on top. We stare at one another for a second as our laughter bubbles up. Before I know it, we're laying side by side with tears in our eyes from laughing so hard, the alcohol still having a loose hold on our systems.   
After what seems like forever we finally calm down, letting our breathing even out. We lay there together staring up at the dark ceiling. I reach between us and lace our fingers, a smile on my face as I fall asleep.


End file.
